Gordon Ramsay, Joe Rogan and a WNBA star all showed up for one wild Austin race weekend.
The 2026 F1 United States Grand Prix celebrities turned Circuit of the Americas into one of the biggest star-studded weekends in Austin, Texas, from October 22 to 25, while Kimi Antonelli's dominant win moved him within two points of the Formula 1 world championship.
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Celebrities At The 2026 F1 United States Grand Prix Line The Paddock
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Chef Gordon Ramsay walked the paddock with his wife Tana Ramsay and their kids, becoming one of the most photographed faces of the weekend. Comedians Joe Rogan and Theo Von strolled the starting grid together before the race, while former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson mixed with the crowd, keeping his long-running connection to car culture alive in Texas.
Actor Keegan-Michael Key showed up alongside a wave of Hollywood names including Glen Powell, Damson Idris, Lamorne Morris, Juno Temple and Gavin Casalegno. Singer Pat Monahan also made an appearance. Texas's own U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and Apple CEO John Ternus were spotted in the crowd too, showing just how far the guest list stretched beyond entertainment and into politics and tech.
Love Island winners Bryce Alakai and Trinity Tatum added a reality TV flavor to the weekend, while businessman Michael Dell represented Austin's deep ties to the tech world. Joe Rogan was also seen chatting with Bobby Epstein, the chairman of Circuit of the Americas, in the pitlane, a small moment that captured how tightly woven the celebrity scene and race organizers have become.
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Athletes Turn Out In Force For Race Weekend
Sports stars were everywhere at COTA this year. San Antonio Spurs forward Harrison Barnes attended, along with basketball players Cameron Brink and Miles Chamley-Watson. Olympic track star Gabby Thomas was also among the athletes spotted around the track.
Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham had the standout athlete moment of the weekend. She didn't just watch from the stands. Cunningham served as the ceremonial checkered-flag waver, meaning she was the one holding the flag when Antonelli crossed the finish line to win the race. It made her one of the most talked-about non-racing figures of the entire event.
Mario Andretti, one of the most respected names in American racing history, also made an appearance, tying the modern celebrity-driven version of F1 back to its motorsport roots in the United States.
Antonelli Dominates On Track While Austin Hosts A Festival
While the famous faces filled the paddock, the real story on Sunday was Kimi Antonelli. The 20-year-old Mercedes driver led the United States Grand Prix from start to finish, a performance NBC News described as a dominant lights-to-flag drive. The win put him on the brink of becoming the 2026 Formula 1 world champion, sitting just two points away from clinching the title with five races still left on the calendar.
The race weekend wasn't just about cars either. Evening concerts turned COTA into a full festival, with performances from Maroon 5, Post Malone and Alesso keeping fans entertained after each day of track action. F1 officials counted a total attendance of 467,000 people across the weekend, a number that highlights just how much the Austin race has grown since Lewis Hamilton won there in a McLaren back in 2012, in what was his last victory before switching to Mercedes.
Why Austin Has Become F1's Biggest American Stage
Austin's race weekend has turned into something bigger than a single sporting event. COTA now blends racing, concerts, celebrity appearances and corporate hospitality into one giant weekend, and that mix is exactly why so many non-racing stars keep showing up. Sponsors use the event to reach wealthy, trend-driven crowds, while celebrities get a high-visibility stage with plenty of camera attention.
This year's guest list also showed how normal it's become for American athletes, actors and business leaders to treat F1 like one of the sport world's biggest social events, not just a race for diehard motorsport fans. Having NBA and WNBA athletes next to tech executives, senators and reality TV winners says a lot about how wide F1's American audience has grown since the series returned to U.S. soil in a major way.
Local businesses in Austin felt the impact too, with hotels, restaurants and transportation services seeing a surge in demand. That same surge, though, created heavy congestion around the city and extra pressure on the airport, something regional outlets flagged as a side effect of hosting an event this large.
What Comes Next For Antonelli And Austin's F1 Future
With five races remaining in the 2026 season, all eyes are now on whether Antonelli can close out the two-point gap and officially become Formula 1 world champion before the season ends. At just 20 years old, a title win would mark a major milestone early in his career.
As for Austin, this year's mix of racing, concerts and celebrity turnout is likely to shape how future U.S. Grand Prix weekends are planned. If the pattern holds, expect even bigger name lists, bigger concerts, and bigger crowds the next time Formula 1 rolls back into Texas.
