F1 Paddock Diary: United States Grand Prix

How did Formula 1’s established American race compare to its new Miami round earlier this year? RaceFans’ US correspondent offers his view.

2022 United States Grand Prix

Thursday

This isn’t my first rodeo, but the excitement of being here hasn’t faded. Last year, attending the United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be in the Formula 1 paddock. Now I’m back for a third time, having attended the inaugural Miami Grand Prix earlier this year.

The day began early, before dawn in the cold. After two flights, the warm sunny skies of the city of San Antonio greeted me, and after a drive north up Interstate Highway 35, I went straight to the track as the day’s media activities were beginning. I didn’t even have time to take my backpack off before I was in a scrum alongside other reporters talking with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. After that, straight to the drivers’ press conferences to hear from Lewis Hamilton and others, then right into another scrum with the now back-to-back two-times world champion, Max Verstappen.

The day was a blur, spent in the company of the drivers and team principals with little time to pause for thought. Of course, nearly all of them had a chance to weigh in on the Red Bull budget cap controversy, and many of them had forthright views on the matter.

The day ended with a barbecue thrown by local team Haas. However their announcement of a new title sponsor and the relaxed atmosphere of the evening dinner, was tinged by the sad news of the passing of one of their own – Harvey Cook, a garage technician who fought his battle with cancer to the very end of a life all too short. The team donned black armbands in his memory for the rest of the weekend.

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Friday

I expected to wake up in the morning to a resolution in Red Bull Racing’s cost cap breach, as there had been whispers the team would hold a press conference before practice began. But early on came word there would be no announcement, the team and FIA seemingly not yet seeing eye to eye on the matter.

Shortly after arriving to the track I was on my way to the support series paddock. I was excited to see the collection of recent vintage sports cars that were taking part in the Masters Endurance Legends races this weekend, and the vintage Masters Formula cars as well – though some of the sports cars felt a bit too young to be classed as ‘vintage’ to me.

While…