Austin, Texas, Oct. 17, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- License-free video, interviews and photographs of "Tonight Show" Host Jay's Leno's Oct. 17 visit to Circuit of The Americas (COTA) are now available at COTA's dedicated FTP site, media.circuitoftheamericas.com. COTA is the only racetrack in the country purposely built to host Formula 1 racing, the world's most popular motorsport.
Leno visited COTA to tape segments for his website, JayLenosGarage.com, exactly one month prior to this year's FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX. The three-day international sports and entertainment spectacle will be held Nov. 15-17 at COTA's new, 1,500-acre facility in Austin, Texas, with the penultimate race of the 2013 F1™ season taking place on Sunday, Nov. 17
Leno, who has hosted NBC's late-night staple for a combined 21 years, is an automotive enthusiast and owns McLaren sports cars. The 63-year-old tested his prowess behind the wheel of a McLaren 12C around COTA's 3.4-mile, Grade I racing circuit as part of a special track experience organized by the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 team and Mobil 1, the team's technology partner.
While Leno was in McLaren's consumer sports car, Oliver Turvey, test driver for the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 team, was in the cockpit of a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-26, the model used by McLaren's Formula 1 racing team during the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championships. Turvey gave Leno a tutorial on the performance of the two types of McLarens and how they compare.
Online files available for download include:
- Natsound video footage of Leno driving a McLaren 12C around Circuit of The Americas' racetrack;
- Interior and exterior GoPro camera video footage of Leno in a McLaren 12C;
- Interior and exterior GoPro camera video of McLaren test driver Oliver Turvey in a McLaren F1 race car;
- Photographs of Leno, Turvey and other McLaren team members in COTA's garages and Pit Lane;
- Photographs of Leno in the McLaren 12C and Turvey in the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-26 doing laps around COTA's 3.4-mile racing circuit; and a
- Voiced video package on Jay Leno's track day at COTA (ready for broadcast).
To access media content, visit media.circuitoftheamericas.comand click on the file labeled "Jay Leno Track Day at COTA 10.17.13." Media members and the general public have free access to video and photographic content stored in the PUBLIC files on COTA's FTP site.
About Circuit of The Americas
Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Texas, is a world-class destination for premium sports and entertainment. It is the first racing facility in the United States purposely built for Formula 1™ racing and is designed to host a variety of sports and entertainment events. The Circuit is home to the FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX, which was named the 2012 "Sports Event of the Year" by SportsBusiness Journal/Daily, and is the new North American host of the summer edition of ESPN's X Games. Additionally Circuit of The Americas welcomes spectators from around the world for some of the most prestigious national and international motorsports series, including MotoGP™, V8 Supercars™, GRAND-AM Road Racing™, American Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championships.
Circuit of The Americas' 1,500-acre campus includes a variety of permanent structures designed for business, education, entertainment and sporting use. Its signature 3.4-mile, 20-turn undulating racetrack features remarkable elevation changes and a number of challenging turns patterned after some of the world's iconic Grand Prix tracks. The Austin360 Amphitheater is an expansive outdoor live music space, featuring the largest permanent stage in Central Texas and the capacity for 14,000 guests. The Circuit's iconic 25-story Observation Tower has a viewing platform offering 360-degree views of the venue, downtown Austin and Texas Hill Country. The 44,000-square foot Event Center offers an expansive convention and banquet space that doubles as an international Media Center during sports and entertainment event. The Event Center includes more than 30 broadcast booths, an internal café and dedicated news conference room. The Circuit's massive Main Grandstand features permanent seating for 9,000, a variety of well-appointed suites, and the Velocity Lounge and hospitality area. Circuit of The Americas also offers a state-of-the-art on-site medical facility, parking for 25,000 vehicles, taxi and shuttle bus depots and a permanent heli-stop. For more information and downloadable video, audio and photos, visit: www.CircuitofTheAmericas.com, www.Austin360Amphitheater.com or the Circuit's dedicated FTP site, media.circuitoftheamericas.com.
About Vodafone McLaren Mercedes:
New Zealand racing driver Bruce McLaren founded the McLaren team in 1963. Since 1966, when it entered its first Formula 1 race, McLaren has won 20 world championships and over 180 grands prix. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2013, McLaren is now globally renowned as one of sport's most successful competitors and as one of the world's most illustrious high-technology brands.
The McLaren Group has grown to encompass much more than just racing: it houses a cutting-edge electronics division that services the entire Formula 1, Indy Car and NASCAR grids; McLaren Applied Technologies creates cutting-edge solutions for modern industry, while McLaren Automotive not only produced the 1990s' original supercar, the F1, but has gone on to launch the internationally acclaimed 12C and P1 high-performance cars.
The team campaigns the 2013 FIA Formula 1 World Championship with the driver pairing of 2009 world champion Jenson Button and young Mexican Sergio Perez. They drive the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes MP4-28.
About McLaren Automotive
McLaren Automotive is a British manufacturer of luxury, high-performance sports cars, located at the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC) in Woking, Surrey. Following the company's global launch in 2010, McLaren Automotive launched the groundbreaking 12C and 12C Spider and, in keeping with its plan to introduce a new model each year, recently unveiled the McLaren P1™. The brand continues to expand, operating through a dedicated global network of retailers in every major automotive market.
McLaren Automotive Partners
To support the development, engineering and manufacture of its range of innovative and highly acclaimed sports cars, McLaren Automotive has partnered with world leading companies to provide specialist expertise and technology. These include Akebono, AkzoNobel, ExxonMobil, Pirelli, SAP and TAG Heuer.
Designed for the track; Developed for the road
The connection between Formula 1 and road cars at McLaren is a natural process of experience, knowledge, principles and process transfer. Through the integration of 50 years of Formula 1 racing expertise and knowledge, and 20 years of heritage in producing landmark sports cars, McLaren Automotive designs, develops and builds the technologically advanced, groundbreaking and no compromise 12C, 12C Spider and McLaren P1™.
McLaren has pioneered the use of carbon fiber in vehicle production over the past 30 years, and since introducing a carbon chassis into racing and road cars with the 1981 McLaren MP4/1 and 1993 McLaren F1 respectively, McLaren has not built a car without a carbon fiber chassis.
Visit cars.mclaren.comfor more details.
About Mobil 1™ motor oil
The world's leading synthetic motor oil brand, Mobil 1 lubricant features anti-wear technology that provides performance beyond our conventional motor oils. This technology allows Mobil 1 motor oil to meet or exceed the toughest standards of car builders and to provide exceptional protection against engine wear, under normal or even some of the most extreme conditions. Mobil 1 lubricant flows quickly in extreme temperatures to protect critical engine parts and is designed to maximize engine performance and help extend engine life.
About ExxonMobil Fuels, Lubricants & Specialties Marketing
ExxonMobil Fuels, Lubricants & Specialties Marketing Company is a leading marketer of fuels, finished lubricants, asphalts and specialty products, as well as one of the world's largest suppliers of lubricant base stocks.
ExxonMobil, Exxon, Esso, Mobil, Mobil 1, and the 1 Icon are trademarks of Exxon Mobil Corporation7 (NYSE:XOM) or one of its subsidiaries
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