Mario Andretti to have COTA corner officially named in his honour

1978 Formula 1 World Champion Mario Andretti has been honoured in the renaming of the final corner at the Circuit of The Americas.

18 rounds have been completed in the 2022 campaign as Formula 1 now moves on to Round 19, the United States Grand Prix at COTA.

And this year the circuit will be sporting a new feature in the form of a renamed Turn 20, now called ‘The Andretti’, a much better ring to it we say!

COTA is celebrating its 10-year anniversary of Formula 1 action as it unveils this tribute to Andretti, one of the most successful drivers to hail from the United States having been a champion in Formula 1 and IndyCar, as well as a 24 Hours of Le Mans class winner.

Previously named ‘Big Red’ in a nod to a co-founder of the track, Andretti will be in attendance for a ceremony on Thursday where ‘The Andretti’ will become an official corner at COTA.

Andretti actually completed the first ever lap at COTA by a driver and was recently back behind the wheel as he put a major tick on his bucket list, driving McLaren’s 2013 Formula 1 challenger, the MP4/28, at the Velocity Invitational at Laguna Seca, thanks to McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown.

The Flying Finn@F1MikaHakkinenmeets@MarioAndrettiat#LagunaSecain a pair of@McLarenF1. Does it get better?#F1pic.twitter.com/aXtKxP3huv

——Goodwood FOS (@fosgoodwood)October 15, 2022

Andretti, Brown andMika Hakkinen, who won both of his Formula 1 titles with McLaren, were all a part of the action.

Formula 1 heads to COTA for the 2022 United States Grand Prix with plenty still up for grabs, even though Max Verstappen confirmed himself as a two-time World Champion last time out at Suzuka.

Charles Leclerc and Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez, who played key roles in swinging the title Verstappen’s way, will continue their battle to finish P2 in theDrivers’ standings,而红牛可以安全the 2022 Constructors’ title at COTA.

It is now looking like a formality that they will scoop the prize, and once they do, it will mean that Mercedes’ run of dominance, that started back in 2014, will come to an end.

Read more: Mario Andretti jokes after McLaren F1 run: ‘I’m getting points for my Super Licence!’