The Circuit of the Americas, or COTA, has long been a circuit that fans either love or hate. Angus and Yannik sit firmly on either end of the debate and locked horns ahead of this weekend's FIA WEC race.
First opened in 2012 as the host to an American return for Formula One, the Circuit of the Americas is no doubt a strange racing venue. With fast, flowing corners paired with tight sections alongside impressively large run-off areas, many would consider it a Marmite track. You either love the American Grade 1 track or hate it.
That is very much where the OverTake editorial team sits as, in the lead up to this weekend's FIA World Endurance Championship Lone Star Le Mans event at the Austin circuit, @Angus Martin and @Yannik Haustein took to the stand in a debate on the race track's quality. Is it a fantastic racing venue that deserves more love or a soulless car park that needs replacing with a shopping mall? Here are the guys to prove their cases.
But topping the list of early 2010s F1 track projects in my mind is Circuit of the Americas. Following the BBC's coverage of the track's construction in the run-up to its 2012 debut was a fascinating, if not stressful time. Indeed, preparations may have taken longer than planned and the circuit's first ever event was a tight deadline in the form of the United States Grand Prix.
But despite the controversy, I remember enjoying that first event that saw Lewis Hamilton come out on top, claiming his last McLaren win. Since then, rarely have I watched a race at the Texan venue that has caused me to turn off from boredom. Very often in fact are exciting races packed with entertaining battles.
Often times, we hear that modern circuits like COTA are engineered for optimal racing. Combining long straights with sharp braking zones and strategically placing sweeping corners. This style of track design does not always work, but in the case of Texas' best, it definitely does.
The layout kicks off with a long run up a steep hill into a wide open first corner allowing for plenty of lines. You then drop down into a sequence of fast sweepers switching left-to-right in a sector inspired by the infamous Becketts and Maggots of Silverstone. The perfect radius, these progressively sharpening turns do a good job of keeping cars close as they run into another passing opportunity.
Circuit of the Americas track map. Image: Mercedes-AMG F1 Media Site
Running downhill after the fast first sector, drivers following another car get the chance to attempt a dive bomb into the furthest corner on the track, a tight hairpin with an open apex. But do not overshoot it as coming just after is an immensely long straight. That too leads into a sharp hairpin that allows a variety of lines, so don't be afraid to send it deep.
To cap off the track, the third sector is far tighter and more technical than the rest of COTA's layout. Because of these tricky switchback hairpins, it often frustrates racers as perfecting the line without melting one's tyres is very challenging. However, it does allow drivers suffering an overtake on the long straight a chance to fight back. Cut backs, over-unders and late sends are all possible just before making your way into the final few single-file corners of the track.
This particular 2017 LMP1 battle proves that a move is never really complete at COTA. Feeding the World Endurance Championship theme of the weekend is Jose Maria Lopez aggressively defending from Andre Lotterer. No matter what the Porsche driver does in his bid to get into the P2 spot, Lopez has an answer. Be it incredible defensive moves or simply making the most of the long straight to slipstream through.
But it isn't just the FIA WEC that makes COTA a fantastic location to race. From Formula One to GT racing and even NASCAR, there are many great battles available to watch on YouTube from Texas. One of which is this infamous NASCAR last lap push that shows that last sector is a racer's dream.
Furthermore, whilst two-wheel racing always offers up eye-widening multi-corner fights, this video from earlier this year (that sadly cannot be embedded) surely takes the biscuit. The bikes' ability to snap back, get underneath the rider ahead and put the power down for a pass on repeat occasions is wild. Battles like this do occur at pretty much every MotoGP event, but surely none quite like this.
And it is not just in the real world that racing can continue for multiple corners at the Circuit of the Americas. In 2022, Jarno Opmeer pulled off a daring double overtake in the final sector to claim victory in the F1 Esports series.
All in all, COTA's layout pushes racers to make more unusual moves and allows those defending to fight back once a pass has been made. You do not push your adversary off-track after sending one down the inside here because making a clean pass whilst optimising your run out of the corner is how you make it stick here.
From turn 2 to turn 9 is a sequence of corners that challenge both a car's grip and driver's precision. Hitting your turn-in points correctly is crucial to maximising speed through the flowing sector 1 whilst ensuring smooth inputs will preserve your tyres for as long as possible. Push too hard here and overheating rubber will ruin your chances not only at achieving your target stint length but also a strong lap time.
First Sector at COTA is fun in any car. Image credit: Mercedes-AMG F1 Team on Lulop
Couple the sector's on-paper complexity with the many bumps that feature as part of the track's personality and differing lines make for interesting choices mid-lap. Whilst racing in the modern age is all about consistency, the additional challenge of finding new lines every year, on the different scans that exist across sim racing mean consistent times are not always easy to achieve.
Elsewhere, the three sectors are clearly very different to one another. From this first part and its high speed corners with rapid direction changes requiring downforce and a stiff chassis to the middle sector's insanely long straight demanding a trimmed out car. Move onto the final sector all about mechanical grip and if you do not have a soft setup, you will struggle to come out on-top in those crucial wheel-to-wheel battles.
It is these extra challenges, both from a driving and setup point of view that make COTA quite the unique venue. As such, a driver with a good setup can surely overcome a struggling car, more so than many other Grade 1 tracks. That is what I love so much about the track.
Plus, how cool does it feel to put together a flying lap time in perfect conditions winding over Texan hills?
But the new-ish era that started in the mid-2000s did not really resonate with me too much - and that is okay. I am not saying that everything since about 2008 has been trash and no one should like it - it is just not for me, and clearly, plenty of people enjoy and have enjoyed F1 from then until today.
Anyway, back to COTA. To me, many of the tracks that joined the F1 calendar at the time had the same problem: They were Tilkedromes. If you have never heard of the term, it has basically become a meme to describe these more modern tracks created on both ends of the 2010 mark designed by Hermann Tilke - you know, the sort of stop-and-go circuit with enormous run-offs that seem to be the go-to in recent years.
The man can design circuits, do not get me wrong - Bilster Berg is perfect proof of that. I assume he simply created what F1 was looking for: tracks that are engineered to feature trademark sections of other circuits, overtaking zones, and an abundance of tarmac run-off. This can also result in good tracks - Bahrain, for instance, I pretty good in my book.
In theory, it really should not. The section from Turn 2 to Turn 11 should flow very well if you look at the circuit layout, but for me, it somehow feels like an infinitely worse version of the Maggots-Becketts-Chapel sequence at Silverstone. The ever-changing corner radiuses throw me off frequently, and the fact that some of them are behind crests does not help.
The rest of the track is more of a start-stop affair, except for Turn 16 to 18, wich is more of a quadruple-apex right-hander - that, I can get behind. But for the rest of the circuit, it always feels a bit cumbersome to me, and it is more a feeling of relief once I completed a lap rather than that nice "alright, one more lap" feeling - no matter if it is behind the wheel of an F1 car or a heavier GT.
@chrisrogers731 seems to agree with me when it comes to COTA.
Of course, this is solely based on my experience in sim racing, and highly subjective, of course. And there is no denying that the facility is constructed extremely well, probably one of the best modern racing venues in the world when it comes to hosting events. As Angus already mentioned, the on-track action is usually good as well - so I am sure I would enjoy attending a race there.
Only driving-wise, COTA just is not fun to me. I can already hear someone shouting "skill issue", and that might be true as I tend to avoid the track - but on the other hand, Bathurst - an arguably even more technical and definitely more punishing circuit - is one of my absolute favorites. I guess it simply comes down to taste.
Nevertheless, I am still looking forward to the WEC aces battle it out at the track this weekend - I will certainly tune in to see how the championship fight is going to develop. And maybe my underdog favorite Peugeot can finally pull off a decent result - fingers crossed for the 9X8 Evo!
What do you think of the Circuit of the Americas? Let us know in the comments below!
First opened in 2012 as the host to an American return for Formula One, the Circuit of the Americas is no doubt a strange racing venue. With fast, flowing corners paired with tight sections alongside impressively large run-off areas, many would consider it a Marmite track. You either love the American Grade 1 track or hate it.
That is very much where the OverTake editorial team sits as, in the lead up to this weekend's FIA World Endurance Championship Lone Star Le Mans event at the Austin circuit, @Angus Martin and @Yannik Haustein took to the stand in a debate on the race track's quality. Is it a fantastic racing venue that deserves more love or a soulless car park that needs replacing with a shopping mall? Here are the guys to prove their cases.
Angus: A COTA enthusiast
As a kid of the 2000's, I have fond memories of the several new circuits that appeared on the Formula One calendar during the height of my fandom for the sport. The Buddh International Circuit in India, Korea's International Circuit and Valencia Street Circuit are some of the tracks I will always enjoy driving in the likes of F1 2012.But topping the list of early 2010s F1 track projects in my mind is Circuit of the Americas. Following the BBC's coverage of the track's construction in the run-up to its 2012 debut was a fascinating, if not stressful time. Indeed, preparations may have taken longer than planned and the circuit's first ever event was a tight deadline in the form of the United States Grand Prix.
But despite the controversy, I remember enjoying that first event that saw Lewis Hamilton come out on top, claiming his last McLaren win. Since then, rarely have I watched a race at the Texan venue that has caused me to turn off from boredom. Very often in fact are exciting races packed with entertaining battles.
The Layout
Whilst there are several reasons for tight battles being synonymous with the Austin track from high tyre degradation to end-of-year races seeing bunched up grids, there is no doubt a main element pushing cars together.Often times, we hear that modern circuits like COTA are engineered for optimal racing. Combining long straights with sharp braking zones and strategically placing sweeping corners. This style of track design does not always work, but in the case of Texas' best, it definitely does.
The layout kicks off with a long run up a steep hill into a wide open first corner allowing for plenty of lines. You then drop down into a sequence of fast sweepers switching left-to-right in a sector inspired by the infamous Becketts and Maggots of Silverstone. The perfect radius, these progressively sharpening turns do a good job of keeping cars close as they run into another passing opportunity.
Circuit of the Americas track map. Image: Mercedes-AMG F1 Media Site
Running downhill after the fast first sector, drivers following another car get the chance to attempt a dive bomb into the furthest corner on the track, a tight hairpin with an open apex. But do not overshoot it as coming just after is an immensely long straight. That too leads into a sharp hairpin that allows a variety of lines, so don't be afraid to send it deep.
To cap off the track, the third sector is far tighter and more technical than the rest of COTA's layout. Because of these tricky switchback hairpins, it often frustrates racers as perfecting the line without melting one's tyres is very challenging. However, it does allow drivers suffering an overtake on the long straight a chance to fight back. Cut backs, over-unders and late sends are all possible just before making your way into the final few single-file corners of the track.
Always makes for great racing
The result is a course that can easily see overtakes and epic battles take place on a variety of corners. At least four traditional 'on-the-brakes' overtaking spots exist whilst several other corners allow for unpredictable lunges. There are several examples available to watch of such racing.This particular 2017 LMP1 battle proves that a move is never really complete at COTA. Feeding the World Endurance Championship theme of the weekend is Jose Maria Lopez aggressively defending from Andre Lotterer. No matter what the Porsche driver does in his bid to get into the P2 spot, Lopez has an answer. Be it incredible defensive moves or simply making the most of the long straight to slipstream through.
But it isn't just the FIA WEC that makes COTA a fantastic location to race. From Formula One to GT racing and even NASCAR, there are many great battles available to watch on YouTube from Texas. One of which is this infamous NASCAR last lap push that shows that last sector is a racer's dream.
Furthermore, whilst two-wheel racing always offers up eye-widening multi-corner fights, this video from earlier this year (that sadly cannot be embedded) surely takes the biscuit. The bikes' ability to snap back, get underneath the rider ahead and put the power down for a pass on repeat occasions is wild. Battles like this do occur at pretty much every MotoGP event, but surely none quite like this.
And it is not just in the real world that racing can continue for multiple corners at the Circuit of the Americas. In 2022, Jarno Opmeer pulled off a daring double overtake in the final sector to claim victory in the F1 Esports series.
All in all, COTA's layout pushes racers to make more unusual moves and allows those defending to fight back once a pass has been made. You do not push your adversary off-track after sending one down the inside here because making a clean pass whilst optimising your run out of the corner is how you make it stick here.
A great challenge to drive
But COTA is far from just about the racing. Sure, that third sector was no doubt designed with race craft and lengthening battles in mind. But there is a whole opening section of the track that mimics other popular drivers' circuits out there.From turn 2 to turn 9 is a sequence of corners that challenge both a car's grip and driver's precision. Hitting your turn-in points correctly is crucial to maximising speed through the flowing sector 1 whilst ensuring smooth inputs will preserve your tyres for as long as possible. Push too hard here and overheating rubber will ruin your chances not only at achieving your target stint length but also a strong lap time.
First Sector at COTA is fun in any car. Image credit: Mercedes-AMG F1 Team on Lulop
Couple the sector's on-paper complexity with the many bumps that feature as part of the track's personality and differing lines make for interesting choices mid-lap. Whilst racing in the modern age is all about consistency, the additional challenge of finding new lines every year, on the different scans that exist across sim racing mean consistent times are not always easy to achieve.
Elsewhere, the three sectors are clearly very different to one another. From this first part and its high speed corners with rapid direction changes requiring downforce and a stiff chassis to the middle sector's insanely long straight demanding a trimmed out car. Move onto the final sector all about mechanical grip and if you do not have a soft setup, you will struggle to come out on-top in those crucial wheel-to-wheel battles.
It is these extra challenges, both from a driving and setup point of view that make COTA quite the unique venue. As such, a driver with a good setup can surely overcome a struggling car, more so than many other Grade 1 tracks. That is what I love so much about the track.
Plus, how cool does it feel to put together a flying lap time in perfect conditions winding over Texan hills?
Yannik: COTA? More like No, Ta!
After Angus' raving review of the track, I am going to have to pump the brakes on the enthusiasm for this next section. COTA has come around in a time that I had already checked out from F1 in, as the 2009 regulations and the resulting looks of the cars certainly were not my cup of tea. The first season I can remember bits of was 1997, and as a kid, F1 was basically holy to me.But the new-ish era that started in the mid-2000s did not really resonate with me too much - and that is okay. I am not saying that everything since about 2008 has been trash and no one should like it - it is just not for me, and clearly, plenty of people enjoy and have enjoyed F1 from then until today.
Anyway, back to COTA. To me, many of the tracks that joined the F1 calendar at the time had the same problem: They were Tilkedromes. If you have never heard of the term, it has basically become a meme to describe these more modern tracks created on both ends of the 2010 mark designed by Hermann Tilke - you know, the sort of stop-and-go circuit with enormous run-offs that seem to be the go-to in recent years.
The man can design circuits, do not get me wrong - Bilster Berg is perfect proof of that. I assume he simply created what F1 was looking for: tracks that are engineered to feature trademark sections of other circuits, overtaking zones, and an abundance of tarmac run-off. This can also result in good tracks - Bahrain, for instance, I pretty good in my book.
A Track That Should Work On Paper
COTA, on the other hand, always felt over-engineered to me. Technical and modern tracks can be fun, as Portimao proves, but they also run the risk of becoming cumbersome. And for me, COTA firmly falls into the latter category.In theory, it really should not. The section from Turn 2 to Turn 11 should flow very well if you look at the circuit layout, but for me, it somehow feels like an infinitely worse version of the Maggots-Becketts-Chapel sequence at Silverstone. The ever-changing corner radiuses throw me off frequently, and the fact that some of them are behind crests does not help.
The rest of the track is more of a start-stop affair, except for Turn 16 to 18, wich is more of a quadruple-apex right-hander - that, I can get behind. But for the rest of the circuit, it always feels a bit cumbersome to me, and it is more a feeling of relief once I completed a lap rather than that nice "alright, one more lap" feeling - no matter if it is behind the wheel of an F1 car or a heavier GT.
Of course, this is solely based on my experience in sim racing, and highly subjective, of course. And there is no denying that the facility is constructed extremely well, probably one of the best modern racing venues in the world when it comes to hosting events. As Angus already mentioned, the on-track action is usually good as well - so I am sure I would enjoy attending a race there.
Only driving-wise, COTA just is not fun to me. I can already hear someone shouting "skill issue", and that might be true as I tend to avoid the track - but on the other hand, Bathurst - an arguably even more technical and definitely more punishing circuit - is one of my absolute favorites. I guess it simply comes down to taste.
Nevertheless, I am still looking forward to the WEC aces battle it out at the track this weekend - I will certainly tune in to see how the championship fight is going to develop. And maybe my underdog favorite Peugeot can finally pull off a decent result - fingers crossed for the 9X8 Evo!
Join the discussion
Both Angus and Yannik clearly have strong opinions on the Texan race track that is the Circuit of the Americas. But let's not end the discussion here. Why don't you make your way to the comments section below and have your thoughts heard on the matter.What do you think of the Circuit of the Americas? Let us know in the comments below!
