00:00The circuit of the Americas known as COTA in Austin, Texas has been on the Formula 1 calendar
00:09since 2012. 3.4 miles, 5.5 kilometers long, it has 20 corners including a uniquely elevated first
00:18turn. Austin bills itself as the live music capital of the world and I'm going to make some
00:25music with this amazing ground-effect 1,000 horsepower McLaren hybrid F1 car. But first
00:32let's get some tips on the track layout from Lando Norris.
00:41What a view, look at that. First corner, amazing. Very inviting, very inviting overtake here.
00:48Lando Norris I think got a better start, he's already alongside Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris goes into the lead.
00:56Very bumpy all the way through here.
00:59Pretty good to be tail happy on the exit.
01:04This apex here will be difficult for us to see.
01:06Yeah, it's pretty hard, all of them are quite hard to see to be honest.
01:10The tighter you can stay here the better, it just grips a lot more.
01:13Stay to the right, stay to the right, dive it in.
01:16Oh lovely.
01:17Nice early brake, sacrifice the early entry, nip all over the inside.
01:30Man, there's late braking in there isn't it?
01:31It's pretty cool huh?
01:32Turn 11 here Finn.
01:34It's quite impressive how late you can brake in this.
01:36Wow, yeah it is actually.
01:37And it still stops very well.
01:39We're looking out for the marker board, 200.
01:44Bit squirrely, missed the orange.
01:49Get back across, nice late turning.
01:53You can let it flow or you can hold it tight, depends what you want to do.
01:56Depends how much grip you've got I guess.
01:58Get back across, don't brake too late, otherwise you'll lock the inside.
02:01Nice and early turning, nice early throttle.
02:05Suddenly all the runoff areas look a lot smaller.
02:08Yes.
02:12You're so fast in this 219 in qualifying.
02:16Completely blind.
02:17Don't do track limits.
02:21Easy to go in too hard here.
02:23Yeah.
02:26I'm ready to go, this is the 73rd different F1 car I've driven.
02:40And the newest.
02:42It's going to severely punish my neck and body and assault all of my senses.
02:47But I can't wait.
02:52Here we go, up to the first corner.
02:54You can barely see the corner.
02:5740 metres, 131 feet.
03:00A little bit of oversteer.
03:01Turn two.
03:03Let's take full throttle to here.
03:07There we go, I'm beginning to pick these up now.
03:11Beginning to get the hang of this track a little bit now.
03:15Where the corners are coming up next.
03:17Finding your reference points.
03:18Seven.
03:20Late apex.
03:22Eight.
03:23Blind nine.
03:25Go!
03:27A little nothingy king of ten down into the hip end of eleven.
03:32Great super late.
03:34There's the apex.
03:36Chops about.
03:41Fear is on.
03:43Oh wow.
03:45Heavy braking for 12.
03:47This is where a lot of overtaking is done.
03:50People going off track.
03:51Down on the inside goes for Staffan.
03:52He forces Lando Norris wide off the track.
03:55And then a really tight technical little section.
03:5913.
04:0114.
04:06Late turning to 15.
04:07Hoping somebody's not coming up the inside of you.
04:10Trying to overtake you.
04:12And then this wonderful quadruple apex.
04:1616.
04:1717.
04:1818.
04:19Wow.
04:21That's incredible.
04:25Into 19.
04:26Too much curb.
04:34Final corner.
04:35Pit straight.
04:37Wow.
04:42What a wonderful experience.
04:44I can't believe McLaren have given me this car.
04:47On this amazing racetrack.
04:49Coated to yourself.
04:51In a 2023 McLaren.
04:53It was just extraordinary.
