I was fortunate to once again have the opportunity to travel to Austin to cover the 2023 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas for Texas Highways magazine. When I first had the assignment of covering the race in 2015, I figured it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Somehow, whether through pure luck, manifesting it, or just maybe some skill I've not attended the Austin-based race eight times as credentialed media. It gets more challenging every year to get creative, but such an amazing experience very time.

Below you'll find mainly outtakes from the published photo essay, which can be found here: "F1 in Austin Makes History With America's First Sprint Race"

Scuderia Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda climbs the "Big Red" hill towards turn one during the Grand Prix.
MoneyGram Haas F1's Kevin Magnussen rounds the tower complex during Saturday's Formula 1 Sprint Race.
The back of Red Bull Racing's pit wall command center with the main grandstand in the background.
McLaren's Lando Norris exits turn one in the early stages of the Grand Prix.
Fictional racing legend Ricky Bobby poses with a longhorn outside the paddock entrance prior to Sundays race.
MoneyGram Haas F1's Nico Hulkenberg speeds down the start/finish straight.
McLaren's Lando Norris overtakes Ferrari's Charles Leclerc at the first corner of the 2023 Formula 1 Lenovo United States Grand PRix.
Scuderia Ferrari's Carlos Sainz passes the COTA Observation Tower during Satruday's Formula 1 Sprint Race.
Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc speeds up the hill towards "Big Red"—the first corner of the racetrack named after one of the initial investors, Red McCombs—during the Formula 1 Sprint Shootout.
Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team's Fernando Alonso—a two-time F1 Drivers Champion—stops at the end of the pit lane at the start of the Sprint Shootout on Saturtday aftertnoon.
Kim Reimer—the "Ferrari Hat Guy"—hails from Florida and has been to numerous Grand Prix including Montreal and Miami, and makes a new hat every season. This year's rendition is his 20th such hat. He likes the United States Grand Prix here in Austin because the track provides numerous excellent vantage points where you can see the track action for a good duration, versus the slivers of track many other racetracks offer.
Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc is interviewed after finishing third in Saturday evening's Formula 1 Sprint Race.
Racing legend Jackie Stewart—Sir John Young Stewart OBE formally—speaks to attendees in the paddock area behind the team garages.
Members of the University of Texas Longhorn Band flash the horns before hefore heading out onto the track to perform prior to the race.
A very Texas-sized welcome greets visitors as they enter the Grand Plaza area at the circuit through the main entrance gates.
In a bit of deja vu from the Sprint Race the day prior, Max Verstappen also won the 2023 Formula 1 Lenovo United States Grand Prix on October 22, 2023.
A large homage to Austin's Mexican Free-Tailed bat population on the mural outside the main grandstand.
The Porsche Carrera Cup Norht America is one of the support races being run during the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix weekend in Austin. Here, a competitor heads towards turn three during the qualifying session Saturday morning.
A performer does lasso tricks on the councourse outside the main grandstand during Friday's track action.
Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc navigate the second qualifying round for Sunday's Grand Prix.
Scuderia Ferrari's Carlos Sainz navigate the second qualifying round for Sunday's Grand Prix.
McLaren F1 Team's Lando Norris crests the hill at Turn 10 with the massive Texas state flag and COTA tower looming in the background.
MoneyGram Haas F1 Team's Nico Hülkenberg stops to take a selfie with a fan during the team's unveiling of a special livery for ithe United States Grand Prix.
A new mural to th eleft of the main grandstand outside the circuit depciting the three primary race series that COTA hosts, as well as items from the Austin skyline.
Oracle Red Bull Racing's Sergio "Checo" Perez navigates the tower complex during free practice one.
Juan Marin, visiting from Houston, is attending his second United States Grand Prix, after having grown up watching it. He couldn't pass up the opportunity after living just a couple of hours away.
Prema Racing's Chloe Chong takes part in free practice one of the F1 Academy series, and all female series meant to serve as a pipeline to the elite levels of motorsport for women.
A view from the back of the Turn 19 grandstand while fans take in the first Formula 1 free practice.
At the United States Grand Prixc, Formula 1 as a whole—and the teams individually—have long embraced what people in other countries view as U.S. culture in general and Texas culture specifically. Here, Scuderia Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz play a friendly game of corn hole in football-styled team jerseys, cowboy hats, and face mustaches.
Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas arrives at the track in cowboy couture.
Race preperation presents itself in hundreds of different ways, not the least of which are teams accounting for their tire allocation for the weekend, and makig sure they're inflated to the requireed specifications.
Published by Matthew Wetzler in Blog, Motorsport
Tags: austin, Circuit of the Americas, COTA, Editorial, Event Photography, F1, Formula 1, Motorsport, Texas Highways, United States Grand Prix, USGP