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How Taylor Swift’s F1 concert helped save the United States Grand Prix

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How Taylor Swift’s F1 concert helped save the United States Grand Prix

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An earlier version of this article misidentified the manager in 2015 for Taylor Swift as Scooter Braun.


As Formula One returns to Austin, Texas, for this weekend’s United States Grand Prix, one of the sport’s other American venues is also occupied with a major event.

Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium, the centerpiece for the grand prix held at the start of May, will be used for three nights of Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Eras Tour, which begins its final stretch of North American dates this week.

Both F1 and Swift have experienced extraordinary surges of popularity in recent years in very different realms. But eight years ago, they shared top billing at the Circuit of The Americas.

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The 2015 event, at which Swift played a concert on the Saturday night after qualifying, proved to be critical for the future of the United States Grand Prix, a race that has since been the cornerstone of F1’s rapid American growth.

“It was a big-dollar commitment at the time, and it paid off,” COTA chairman Bobby Epstein told The Athletic. “We’re grateful to Taylor for taking the chance.”


F1’s current foothold of three American races would have been unthinkable a decade ago when holding one grand prix stateside was a considerable achievement. There had been a five-year absence for F1 in America between the final event at Indianapolis in 2007 and its return in 2012 at COTA, the first purpose-built facility for the sport in the United States.

COTA quickly became one of the drivers’ favorite tracks thanks to its challenging, undulating layout, and it was popular with fans. The first year pulled in a Friday to Sunday race weekend attendance of 265,000 — which looks small compared to the 2022 record of 440,000, reported by F1 — as crowds flocked to see the sport’s return to the United States. Even with a calendar fixture toward the end of each season, giving the potential of seeing a race that could influence the crucial part of a championship battle, there was a struggle to build greater interest. The weekend figures dropped to 250,000 for 2013 and lower still to 237,000 in 2014.

But the 2015 race left serious doubts over the future of the grand prix in Austin. As Hurricane Patricia brought record rainfall and high winds to Austin, FP2 was canceled, and qualifying was postponed to Sunday morning after three hours of rain delays. After long waits at the track hoping to see some on-track action, the disappointed fans had to contend with the grass parking lots turning into mud baths, making getting in and out of the track challenging.

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Sunday’s grand prix went ahead on schedule as Lewis Hamilton clinched his third world championship, but weekend attendance dipped to a low of just 224,000, leading to concerns about the event’s popularity.


Hurricane Patricia made the 2015 U.S. GP a dour affair. (SIPA USA)

There was also a fresh challenge to fund the United States Grand Prix. In the weeks after the race, Governor Greg Abbott’s office announced it would cut $6 million in state funding for the grand prix. Bernie Ecclestone, then F1’s CEO, admitted at the time that it looked challenging to see a future for the race in Austin.

It left Epstein and his team looking for new ways to boost the event’s fortunes if they wanted to help secure the long-term future of F1’s only American grand prix.

“We had a lot of people very upset about the experience they had with the rain and the mud, and we needed to make it up to them,” Epstein said. “We put in a lot of sidewalks, and we paved a lot of parking lots, and we got a lot more buses. But on top of it, we wanted to do better and offer more.”

That is where Taylor Swift came into the picture.

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Austin’s reputation as a music city meant adding concerts to the race weekend offering had always been a big part of COTA’s identity. Kid Rock and Elton John were among the first headliners, but as plans came together for 2016, Epstein and his team looked for the biggest star possible.

Epstein contacted Swift’s team, wanting to see if she would be interested in being the 2016 race headliner. Swift had no performances scheduled for the year, having spent the entirety of 2015 on her “1989” album world tour.

If any diehard Swifties were desperate to see her in concert that year, they would have to go to the F1 race. Suddenly, a United States Grand Prix ticket became much more valuable. A three-day general admission ticket started at $150 and would include access to the concert.

“We remember the massive amount of criticism we took from the race fans when we said we were going to bring in a performer like that, that it was taking attention away from the racing,” Epstein said.

Ecclestone was among those to share some concern, semi-jokingly asking Epstein if he should even bother to bring the F1 cars to COTA.

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After watching Hamilton lead a Mercedes front row lockout in qualifying on Saturday, 80,000 fans stayed well into the evening at the track to watch Swift’s show from the infield, making it — at the time — one of her highest-attended shows. The 15-song set mainly featured songs from “1989” and “Red,” and there was no new material, but it did have a first performance of “This Is What You Came For,” a song that Swift wrote for Calvin Harris and Rihanna.

The concert received rave reviews. Billboard called it a “knockout performance,” while Rolling Stone said, “it showed no drop off or rust from a star determined to remain one of the biggest names in music for a long time to come.” How true that would prove.

Swift closed out the set with “Shake It Off,” which fit the mood of COTA’s weekend. After all the struggles of the previous year, it had drawn a record crowd of almost 270,000 fans who enjoyed good weather and good music on top of the racing action. It was an important bounce-back after the 2016 washout, proving that F1 had a bright future in Austin.

It also helped draw in a very different demographic of attendees as younger fans, more women and more families attended. “When we look back, we feel validated for the vision that this group had to do that and offer more to the race fan and allow them to bring family members,” Epstein said. “You can give a very full amount of entertainment, and not at all compromise the quality of the on-track action. You don’t have to take anything away from the race by giving more to the fans.”

The change in F1’s fan demographic to become younger and more diverse has been a core part of its recent growth, particularly in the “Drive to Survive” era. But Epstein felt COTA had been ahead of the curve thanks to its off-track offerings.

“I don’t know if we’re given any credit for it, but we’ll take it because it’s true,” he said. “We started (it), we did. We got a much younger audience starting to watch and pay attention to that, because of Taylor, Justin Timberlake (the 2018 headliner), and Ed Sheeran (2022).

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“You start looking at some of those, and that’s who was paying attention to those artists, with Instagram and things that people post on, it very quickly reaches that demographic and that generation.”


Fans explored the track during qualifying as they waited for the Taylor Swift concert. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

COTA’s model of having a huge headliner perform on a race weekend has become common in F1. Under Liberty Media, which completed its acquisition of F1 in early 2017, grands prix have now been turned into multi-day events where the off-track entertainment is a big part of its offering to fans.

However, even with the addition of new American events in Miami and Las Vegas, each of which has its own appeal, the concerts have remained a big part of the United States Grand Prix’s identity in Austin. Sting will headline on Friday before Eminem performs on Saturday night. Like Swift in 2016, it will be his only live show of the year.

Epstein expected that with changes made at the track to allow even more fans to attend, it would likely break Swift’s record at COTA and draw in a crowd of 100,000 people.

“It’s a fun event to play, just the way that the whole setting is,” Epstein said. “I think the agents and the performers know about it now. It has credibility, and it’s something that they want to be named the headliner for the United States Grand Prix.

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“Playing at the halftime of the Super Bowl is a pretty well-recognized honor for performers. I think playing the US Grand Prix is also an honor.”

With more than 12 months until the 2025 race — which will mark 10 years since F1’s low point in Austin, when the future of the sport in the United States looked to be in doubt once again — Epstein is already engaged in conversations about the next headliners. He said getting a big name was “somewhat expected of us.”

“I know the conversations we’re having for 2025,” he said. “I’m pretty excited about it.”

Top photo: Sipa USA

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Navy tops Army with late touchdown as Trump’s attendance in Baltimore sparks protests

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Navy tops Army with late touchdown as Trump’s attendance in Baltimore sparks protests

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For the second year in a row, the Navy Midshipmen have won the Commander-in-Chief Trophy.

The Midshipmen earned a gutsy 17-16 victory over Army in one of the greatest rivalries in sports.

Navy got out to a scorching-hot start, as they scored a touchdown on their first drive, with Blake Horvath rushing for 45 of the 75 yards on the drive and running in for the score. He also had an 11-yard pass.

 

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President Donald Trump greets players after the coin toss and before the start of the 126th Army-Navy Game between the Army Black Knights and the Navy Midshipmen at M&T Bank Stadium, Saturday, in Baltimore, Md. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Army, though, answered right back with an identical drive, going 13 plays for 75 yards — this one ended with Cale Hellums punching one in.

Navy’s offense was stalled for a long while after, as their next three drives ended in a punt, fumble, and interception. In the meantime, the Black Knights were able to tack on three more field goals to go up, 16-7. Late in the third, the Midshipmen finally added more points on the scoreboard with a field goal that cut their deficit to three.

Early in the fourth, Navy forced an Army interception. Navy had the ball at the goal line but fumbled on a quarterback sneak, losing seven yards. Horvath hit Eli Heidenrich in the end zone, though, and the ensuing kick gave the Midshipmen their first lead since the first drive of the game. 

Navy promptly forced a three-and-out and got the ball back with less than five minutes to go. Navy lost a fumble when trying for a first down that would have iced the game, but the play was reviewed, and the call was reversed. Thus, Navy had a fourth-and-1 and kept the offense on the field. They got the first down that iced the game.

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US President Donald Trump tosses a coin before the college football game between the US Army and Navy in Baltimore, Maryland, on December 13, 2025.  (Photo by Alex Wroblewski / AFP via Getty Images)

CHICAGO RADIO HOST RIPS CUBS PLAYER FOR TURNING POINT EVENT ATTENDANCE, LIKENS IT TO ‘NAZI-ADJACENT PEP RALLY’

With the win, Navy earned the Commander-in-Chief trophy by also defeating Air Force earlier in the year.

The game was its usual old-school ground-and-pound style of football, as there were only 24 pass attempts compared to 86 runs.

President Donald Trump attended the game for the seventh time, and his second in as many years since being elected again. Trump participated in the coin flip, but not before protesters wielded lewd signs opposing Trump on the street leading up to the stadium. 

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Protests were expected for the game in the blue city, as Trump has suggested sending the National Guard to Baltimore to help address the city’s rampant crime. Baltimore consistently ranks among U.S. cities with high crime rates, often appearing in the top 5 for violent crimes, especially homicides and robberies. 

U.S. President Donald Trump (2nd-L) walks onto the field for the 126th Army-Navy Game between the Army Black Knights and the Navy Midshipmen on Dec. 13, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. The teams are competing for the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, with President Trump attending the rivalry for the second consecutive year.  (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The protests against Trump also come on the same day that officials said two U.S. Army soldiers and a U.S. interpreter were killed in an ambush attack in Syria. 

Fox News’ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.

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Jarred Vanderbilt hoping for an opportunity to help Lakers on defense

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Jarred Vanderbilt hoping for an opportunity to help Lakers on defense

Perhaps Jarred Vanderbilt and his ability to defend can help the Lakers and their reeling defense.

Perhaps Vanderbilt can return to the rotation to help the Lakers’ defensive woes while guard Austin Reaves is out for approximately a week because of a mild left calf strain.

And perhaps Vanderbilt and the Lakers can get some immediate results for shoring up their defensive shortcomings when they face the Suns in Phoenix on Sunday afternoon.

The 6-foot-8 Vanderbilt is hopeful that his opportunity will come against the Suns and he turns that into a positive for the Lakers.

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“Oh, yeah, I’m pretty eager,” he said after practice Saturday. “I mean, obviously, I think a lot of the stuff we lack, I think I can help provide on that end.”

In the last 10 games, Vanderbilt had only a three-minute stint against the Philadelphia 76ers because Jake LaRavia took a shot to the face that loosened a tooth.

The return of LeBron James and Vanderbilt’s offensive deficiencies left him out of the rotation. During much of that time the Lakers were winning, which meant Vanderbilt spent time on the bench.

In 15 games, Vanderbilt is three for 10 (26.6%) from three-point range. He was asked how he has been handling things.

“Good,” Vanderbilt said. “Controlling what I can control. Keep showing up to work, doing my part, supporting the team.”

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Vanderbilt was asked if coach JJ Redick or any assistants have spoken to him about his role.

“Kind of here and there, I guess,” Vanderbilt said.

Vanderbilt was seen after practice Saturday working with an assistant coach on his shooting, just like he did after practice Friday and like he has done while not playing.

Redick said Reaves, who played against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night, wasn’t sure when the calf became an issue, and “we’re obviously gonna be cautious with it.”

“It’s a mild strain, Grade 1, and he’ll be out for a week,” Redick said, adding, “I would venture to say every player is a little bit different, but players now are becoming more cautious — to use that word again — more cautious when they get those diagnosis with the calf. Everything looks clean. It’s not in the deep part.”

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The Lakers have looked at the last 10 games during the film sessions as a barometer for their defensive problems. But in reality, the Lakers have not been very good on defense all season while producing a 17-7 record because of their stellar offense.

“It’s been a trending thing even when we was winning, so I think like you said, the defense still wasn’t there, but we was just outscoring everybody,” Vanderbilt said. “So, I think obviously during the loss, it’s an appropriate time to address certain things just so it won’t keep lingering and get worse.”

The Lakers are 18th in the NBA in points given up (116.8), 22nd in opponents’ field-goal percentage (48.1%) and 27th in opponents’ three-point shooting (38.2%).

They will face a Suns team that defeated them Dec. 1 at Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers were unable to stop Collin Gillesipie, who had 28 points and was eight for 14 from three-point range, and Dillon Brooks, who had 33 points.

It hasn’t gotten better in the ensuing days. The Spurs loss was the Lakers’ third in the last five games.

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“Nobody likes to go watch film after you get your ass kicked,” guard Marcus Smart said. “It’s tough because the film never lies. And it exposed us a lot, which we already knew. We were just winning a lot of games. So it was mitigated that way, but it was straight to it: We have to be able to guard.

“The scouting report against us is we’re not guarding people. And if we want to be great in this league and do what we’re trying to do, you have to be able to guard, especially in the West. These guys are no joke, and they’re coming. And especially [if] you got the Lakers across your jersey. They’re definitely coming with everything they have. So you can’t be expecting any surprises. And that’s what it was. It wasn’t no sugarcoating anything. It was, ‘This is what we got to do.’ We’ve been asked. Let’s fix it.”

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Michigan football staffer who had alleged affair with Sherrone Moore still employed by university

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Michigan football staffer who had alleged affair with Sherrone Moore still employed by university

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The football staffer who allegedly had a romantic relationship with fired head coach Sherrone Moore is still employed by the University of Michigan.

The woman has served as Moore’s executive assistant. 

“There is no change in her employment status,” a Michigan spokesperson told Fox News. 

The woman received a massive pay bump between 2024 and 2025.

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Former Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore appears via video in court in Ann Arbor, Mich., Dec. 12, 2025. (Ryan Sun/AP Photo)

The individual allegedly linked to Moore, whose LinkedIn profile lists her as an executive assistant to the head football coach at the University of Michigan, made just over $58,000 in 2023 and 2024, according to public payroll information. In the 2025 fiscal year, though, her salary jumped to $99,000, according to a salary disclosure report from the University of Michigan.

During Moore’s arraignment Friday, prosecutors alleged he and the staffer had been in an “intimate relationship for a number of years,” which they say the woman ended on Monday. Prosecutors further claim Moore sent multiple text messages and made phone calls that prompted the woman to report the situation to the university and cooperate with its investigation.

Moore was released from jail Friday on $25,000 bond, according to police records obtained by Fox News Digital. 

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However, it’s unclear whether Moore will be returning home to his family. 

Moore’s attorney, Joseph Simon, declined to say whether the coach will be going home to his wife and three children while speaking to reporters at an Ann Arbor courthouse Friday. 

FIRED MICHIGAN COACH SHERRONE MOORE ACCUSED OF STALKING VICTIM ‘FOR MONTHS’ IN POLICE DISPATCH AUDIO

“I’m just going to not answer that question,” Simon said when asked if Moore was “going to be able to go home.”

Moore has been married to wife Kelli since 2015, and they have three daughters together — Shiloh, Solei and Sadie. Simon also declined to comment on the “mood” of his client after Moore was charged. 

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The conditions of Moore’s release require him to wear a GPS tether and continue mental health treatment and forbid him from communicating with the victim.

Moore was fired Wednesday, and the University of Michigan quickly announced it found credible evidence he had an “inappropriate relationship” with a staffer. Moore was then detained by police Wednesday after news of his dismissal broke. 

Moore was arraigned in court Friday on stalking and home invasion charges. According to prosecutors, he faces a felony charge of home invasion in the third degree and two misdemeanor charges of stalking and breaking and entering without the owner’s permission.

Both misdemeanor charges are related to a “domestic relationship.”

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Michigan Wolverines head football coach Sherrone Moore during warmups before a game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Wrigley Field in Chicago Nov. 15, 2025. (Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)

When Moore was fired from his position as head coach, prosecutors said, it prompted him to visit the woman’s home. 

Moore then allegedly “barged” his way into the residence, grabbed a butter knife and a pair of kitchen scissors and began threatening his own life. According to prosecutors, Moore allegedly told the staffer, “My blood is on your hands” and “You ruined my life.” 

Prosecutors claimed Moore “terrorized” the staffer and that they believed him to be a “risk to public safety.” 

Fox News’ Patrick McGovern contributed to this report.

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