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IndyCar: Circuit of the Americas added to the 2019 schedule

By Asher Fair

AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 22: Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain driving the (44) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Mercedes F1 WO8 on track during the United States Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on October 22, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX - OCTOBER 22: Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain driving the (44) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Mercedes F1 WO8 on track during the United States Formula One Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas on October 22, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /
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Circuit of the Americas has been added as a venue to the 2019 IndyCar schedule, meaning the schedule is set to feature 17 races next year.

After it was announced in June that the IndyCar race at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona, which took place on the first Saturday in April earlier this year, would not return to the schedule in the 2019 season, a search for a replacement race had taken place.

That replacement race has just been announced, and this race is set to take place at Circuit of the Americas. This race is scheduled to take place on the penultimate Sunday of March next year, which is Sunday, March 24.

Here is what IndyCar CEO Mark Miles had to say about Circuit of the Americas being added to the 2019 IndyCar schedule, according to IndyStar.

"“COTA is one of the finest motorsports facilities in the world, and Austin is a happening city. This a natural fit for the IndyCar Series. Indy car racing has a large and passionate fan base in Texas with a hunger to attend more races. This added date will allow us to deliver both oval and road course events to the state in a single season.”"

Here is what Circuit of the Americas founder and chairman Bobby Epstein had to say about the matter, according to IndyStar.

"“It’s going to be spectacular. Our entire team at COTA is excited to welcome the teams, drivers and visitors to our great city, and we know Austin will give them a warm welcome.”"

Circuit of the Americas is a 20-turn, 3.427-mile (5.513-kilometer) road course in Austin, Texas. The track is a relatively new track, as it broke ground on December 31, 2010 and opened on October 21, 2012.

Circuit of the Americas currently hosts a number of races, most notably Formula 1‘s United States Grand Prix, which it signed a 10-year contract to host through at least the 2021 season back in 2012.

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Despite the fact that Circuit of the Americas is set to host its first IndyCar race next year, Texas Motor Speedway, the other track located in the state of Texas that is on next year’s IndyCar schedule, is set to return to the schedule after IndyCar and the track agreed to a four-year contract.

Eddie Gossage, the president of the four-turn, 1.44-mile (2.317-kilometer) Texas Motor Speedway oval in Fort Worth, Texas, had a non-compete “radius clause” in the track’s previous IndyCar contract, meaning that no other IndyCar races were permitted to be held within a certain radius of the track. This previously prevented an IndyCar race from taking place at Circuit of the Americas.

However, Gossage compromised, and as a result, in addition to Texas Motor Speedway returning to the scheduled for the 23rd consecutive season, Circuit of the Americas is set to host its first IndyCar race in 2019, making it the only track in the world to host both an IndyCar race and a Formula 1 race in the same season.

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How will the action be in the first IndyCar race at Circuit of the Americas? Be sure to tune in to the live broadcast of the race from the Austin, Texas road course on either NBC or NBC Sports Network on Sunday, March 24, 2019.