Texas Grand Prix 2017

Another perfect weekend at one of the most exciting circuits in MotoGP!

Austin is a brilliant city, we managed to arrive a day early and stay a day Monday to catch more of it's charms. We wished we could spend more time; if just for the food! What a great place to hold a MotoGP.

We started Thursday with the traditional happy hour in the Hyatt bar. This went on - as tradition dictates - several hours longer than planned. Eventually a group of us, mainly the guests at our classic package in the nearby Super8, rolled out and found an awesome Taco truck for the perfect opening night Austin meal.

Friday we set about exploring the track. One of our groups (local Texans mainly) were guests of our teams LCR Honda and Aprilia Gresini, so we got an opportunity to see their operations and make it trackside to watch the bikes close up. We also managed visits to several Moto2/3 garages including our sponsored Moto2 Team SAG Racing. Early threats of rain never materialised for the MotoGP boys, with Marquez and Vinales splitting the honours. Friday evening a group of us hit an Austin classic - Cooper's BBQ. "It's about the meat!" Messy and lovely.

Saturday we opened our private VIP Village suite, nestled in good company between Repsol Honda and Michelin; just above the Pramac Ducati garage. Brilliant breakfast (tacos!), lunch and snacks throughout, along with a bar well stocked with wine, beer and champagne made this a place that was hard to leave. Of course we only had to step out to our private viewing terrace or head up to the rooftop for more views. Other customers had the run of the track, and it was a great day to explore around the vast COTA. Qualification was dramatic with Marc Marquez pulling out a final lap to put him first on the grid ahead of rival Maverick Vinales, and old favourite Valentino Rossi taking 3rd. We also loved taking in the MotoAmerica races. The atmosphere around this circuit is fantastic, especially on a blazingly beautiful day of perfect temperatures (a little on the chilly side, which we - and the riders - like)

We had two rider guests up to the suite. In the morning it was our sponsored Moto2 rider and Moto3 world champion, Danny Kent. A lovely lad, easy to talk to and honest about his problems on the bike, what it felt like to be crowned the first British champion in many years, and much more. (As a footnote, Danny was not to race on Sunday, citing a pinched nerve in warmup. In fact he and his team had had a falling out and he quit the team Sunday morning. Being such a professional, he didn't even hint at any trouble when he met us in the suite Saturday.)

In the afternoon we were entertained by Moto3 rider Jakub Kornfeil. "Kuba" had been the fastest Mahindra in qualification, but sadly that still placed him 23rd. He gave us some real insights into riding the track, what you have to do on which corners and things to look out for. Fascinating.

Saturday evening we held our welcome dinner (this is normally on Friday but owing to scheduling requirements we moved to Saturday) This took place again at the tantalising Indian restaurant the Clay Pit, in downtown Austin. Plenty of food and drink flowed as the night wore on... Our special guest was MotoGP rookie Sam Lowes, who spent a lot of time with us, talking to individuals, signing autographs and more. He shared with us the experience of stepping up from Moto2 to MotoGP -- far more profound than (what he thought at the time was a big step) from World Supersport to Moto2. He also lets slip that he is a 5 handicap golfer, so think twice before accepting HIS invitation! A brilliant charismatic guy, struggling a bit with the Aprilia but we expect him to come on strong late in the season and of course into 2018.

We were also joined by our "mystery" guest. We often bring in "unknown" people working in the MotoGP world - at European rounds we do this on Thursday at our "Insider's Night". This night it was Olga Budimir who is as close to a "professional" marshal as this volunteer job can get. Doing this job for over a decade all over the world, she offered some amazing insights into the world of marshaling, track prep and related issues. Some very scary stuff here! Spellbinding.

Race Day Sunday dawned without a trace of the rain we had been warned of. A bit cold, but perfect track conditions meant we would see some stellar racing. As usual, the day was over before it started, but not before we had experienced some great racing in all three classes. A group of us ended under the podium to witness Marquez's continuing domination of the USA; and Valentino Rossi taking 2nd place, and 1st place in the championship. The third podium was Dani Pedrosa -- a rider we think will be one to beat this year!

But the ride of the race was our sponsored Cal Crutchlow, who overtook Zarco in the last lap on a beautiful pass, and went on to take a sensational 4th - the top independent rider of the race!

We closed the day right with Cal coming up to our suite basking in the glory of his race and adulation of his many fans in our suite! What a way to end a perfect MotoGP weekend!

Sunday night, as is our tradition, we took in a bit of the local culture -- which of course in Texas means Mexican! Stellar margaritas, table made guacamole and a good time for all - especially those who hit the music bars after - sounded a great note to leave the music capital of the world, lovely Austin.


PHOTO CREDITS

All photos have the initials of the photographer in the filename:

JV - John Vanderpool (guide)
GH - Gordon Howell (guide)
NP - Neil Pulbrook (guide)
JH - Jana Hrstkova (company director)
CRM - Cormac Ryan Meenan (official PPT photographer - cormacgp.com)