Hermann Tilke to Design New F1 Austin Cricuit

Awesome! Another festival of non-passing. Something along the lines of a 3-mile, 39-turn wonder, I suppose. But I bet it will be a GORGEOUS FACILITY, which means IndyCar will be interested in parading -- er -- racing there.

Read about it on autosport.com

Comments

[H. B. Donnelly]

oh, but it'll have a nine-apex, 720-degree, banked, downhill right turn with longhorn cattle strategically placed to provide a little extra challenge. Oh, there will alsobe one absurdly tight 90-degree turn at the end of a full-throttle blast, but Tilke will have the good sense to place a ridiculous kink right before the braking point to make sure there isn't TOO much passing...

[AZZO45]

Cart before the horse???

Tavo Hellmund, whose company Full Throttle Productions is largely unknown outside of Austin, and he admitted that land has NOT BEEN BOUGHT but three sites are being considered.

JMO shouldn't the land be bought before they announce their deal? Every real estate agent in & around Austin just raised their asking prices SUBSTANTIALLY, eh???!!!

[Dylan]

Well, the reason Indycar couldn't run at Interlagos is because of some sort of exculsivity contract, hopefully Austin gets that so Indycar's never go near it. But Indycar still isn't at Road America or Miller, so the chances for Austin can't be too good

[Tom G.]

More importantly, who will be doing the landscaping? Shrubbery, not passing, is what the fans want.

[GeorgeK]

Do you think Herr Tilke consults with any racing drivers before finalizing his track layouts? Judging from his prior work I would say "Nein".

My understanding as to why Hermann gets all the new track work is because his firm also performs the construction management side of the deal. So far all of his new work has come in on time and on budget. A powerful inducement to any newbie looking to open a facility.

[Savage Henry]

"...a track similar to the great grand prix tracks of previous generations".

Insert Pressdog-style coffee spew here.

Isn't Tilke credited with neutering "great grand prix tracks of previous generations" like Hockenheim and Silverstone?

He'll probably say that the new course was inspired by Spa, only he removed Eau Rouge and put chicanes on all the straights.

What F1 needs is more balls-out racing, not exhibitions of technical driving skill devoid of overtaking.

[Jesse]

I think what held up Interlagos-- and will prevent any race in Austin if that track is built-- is the fact that the IRL doesn't want to turn laps several seconds slower than another series.

"The fastest race on earth" no?

[Titus Pullo]

How much money does Herr Tilke kickback to Bernie so he can remain the exclusive designer of F1 racetracks?

[Savage Henry]

Great point, Jesse

[Leigh O'Gorman]

"...Do you think Herr Tilke consults with any racing drivers before finalizing his track layouts? Judging from his prior work I would say "Nein"..."

For the new circuit in India, yes Tilke has taken pointers from drivers, which is probably why it looks somewhat different from his previous works.

"...Isn't Tilke credited with neutering "great grand prix tracks of previous generations" like Hockenheim and Silverstone?..."

Tilke has never at any stage done any design work on Silverstone.
Due to monetary issues (i.e. - they couldn't cut down the trees to build more grandstands), Hockenheimring's only other option was to have Tilke literally draw a line across the old circuit and tie them together.
I'm not a Tilke defender by any stretch, but a little basic research before you lay down false claims.

[wmarshallmoseley]

Are they going to come back to the states and finish the last race?

You know, this entire subject should be the start of some really great ~F1 / Texas~ jokes. Anyone?

BP Gran Prix
(British Petroleum)
There, I've leaked it!

The Inaugural 'It's not far enough away from Indianapolis, and we might finish the race,and..........we might not' Gran Prix

And here to make driver introductions, our very own Sarah Ferguson....

Really, could Texas turn any farther to the right?