LAS VEGAS – Scott Speed has nearly done it all when it comes to auto racing.

The Red Bull driver was one of the few American drivers to compete in Formula 1. He’s raced on ovals in NASCAR and won several championships in Rallycross.

Speed competed for Scuderia Toro Rosso 28 times between the 2006 and 2007 seasons. He was one of the last Americans to compete in F1 races before Alexander Rossi and Logan Sargeant. 

At that time, the United States Grand Prix was a fixture on the Formula 1 schedule, and it wasn’t until 2022 when the Miami Grand Prix started and, last year, the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Since 2023, the U.S. has hosted three Formula 1 races as the sport’s popularity has skyrocketed.

“It’s out of control. It’s so, so different,” Speed told Fox News Digital Friday. “Honestly, it was kind of nicer because I’m a bit of a reserved person. So, after I came back to America after my Formula 1 career was over, it was quite nice actually that no one recognized me or knew me. I could kind of just like start over from scratch. I honestly really enjoyed the anonymity.

“Now, obviously, it’s cool because there’s so many of my fellow Americans and so many of my friends and family here now that know what Formula 1 is, and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, you did that?’ And that’s pretty special to be able to share with them. As a fan of motor racing in general, I’m so glad that, whether it was the Netflix show or a lot of factors, it’s grown here and that’s really cool.”

Speed didn’t have the success of Mario Andretti, but getting to drive at the pinnacle of open-wheel racing is a major win.

Competing against the likes of Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa is no easy task.

“Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motor racing, right? But there wasn’t really a path in America. So, it was kind of like an ambitious goal, and I was very fortunate to have an opportunity with the Red Bull America driver search to have that opportunity to move to Europe and to actually have a pathway from the Red Bull Junior Development program to actually get there.

Formula One driver Scott Speed (USA) during practice for the 2007 Grand Prix of France at Magny-Cours Motorway June 29, 2007. (GEPA pictures/ Mathias Kniepeiss via USA Today Sports)

MCLAREN’S ZAK BROWN TALKS MENTALITY IN TIGHT RACE FOR F1 CONSTRUCTORS’ CHAMPIONSHIP

“My biggest memories are just how special it was to be able to maximize those opportunities and actually get there.”

Speed said one of the most difficult parts of Formula 1 was to go from winning a lot or competing in the front in the feeder series to racing hard against the best of the best. And not always finding victory lane or the podium was a “difficult thing to get used to.”

“Formula 1 is super special, and the cars are unbelievably fast. I think the most special, I mean, everybody will remember the first time they pull out of a garage in a Formula 1 car. And, for me, that was Barcelona in a V-10. So, I was also lucky to have the memory of the engines and they sounded amazing. Many great memories.”

Speed raced in NASCAR for several years before getting another opportunity to compete in another different kind of racing – Rallycross, which takes place on a closed mixed-surface circuit.

Scott Speed drives the No. 41 Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross Beetle during the Red Bull Global Rallycross race at Daytona International Speedway June 21, 2015, in Daytona Beach, Fla.  (Brian Cleary/Getty Images)

The Red Bull athlete won three consecutive Global Rallycross championships from 2015 to 2017 and the Americas Rallycross championship in 2018. He told Fox News Digital he wanted to give himself a challenge and race in a series outside his comfort zone.

“There’s so many options that would have been a lot easier and maybe more of a natural fit,” he said. “I really wanted to challenge myself and do something different. 

“It’s probably the decision I’m most happy about because it led me down a path of exploration and learning different ways to drive a vehicle. And I fell in love with that aspect of motor racing – away from being good at driving one type of car one way. I fell in love with, ‘Oh, this car, I need to, as a driver, do a lot of different things to optimize the vehicle.’ And I fell in love with that.

“With Rallycross after stock car racing, it was another evolution of that like, ‘OK, this requires something else,’ and I’ve just been always in love and fascinated with what it takes to try to maximize the physics of the vehicles. I’ve been lucky to have those opportunities to be able to go from all these different disciplines.”

Speed also offered advice to young drivers looking to break into the sport.

“Don’t quit,” he said. “I really believe you can have everything you want in life if you want it bad enough. It always comes down to being willing to pay the price that it costs and if you’re willing to put in the energy and time that it needs to do something. Anything’s possible.

Former NASCAR Cup Series driver Scott Speed during the Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Ariz., Nov. 5, 2023. (Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)

“I think that the most important thing is you love what you do. I was very lucky to find at a very young age that I loved racing, and I was able to pursue that and turn that into a career. But I think the love of racing is the bedrock of that because the effort and energy it takes to be successful in something as difficult as motor racing requires a lot of energy. And if you don’t love what you’re doing, you’re not going to be willing to pay that price that it takes.”

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CITY SECTION

SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

Narbonne 27, Birmingham 7

San Pedro 40, Carson 34 (OT)

DIVISION I

Palisades 63, Eagle Rock 45

King/Drew 35, Kennedy 23

DIVISION II

South Gate 62, Arleta 43

Chatsworth 21, Sylmar 20

DIVISION III

Panorama 22, Los Angeles 6

Van Nuys 17, Fulton 12

SOUTHERN SECTION

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

SEMIFINALS

DIVISION 1

Mater Dei 36, Corona Centennial 7

St. John Bosco 20, Orange Lutheran 17

DIVISION 2

Murrieta Valley 55, Oaks Christian 52 (OT)

Newbury Park 20, Yorba Linda 14

DIVISION 3

Simi Valley 28, Loyola 25

Edison 42, Vista Murrieta 14

DIVISION 4

St. Bonaventure 20, Apple Valley 13

Oxnard Pacifica 28, Thousand Oaks 16

DIVISION 5

La Serna 34, Summit 22

Palos Verdes 27, Foothill 24

DIVISION 6

Murrieta Mesa 31, St. Francis 28

Glendora 25, Dana Hills 21

DIVISION 7

Rio Hondo Prep 42, West Torrance 21

Warren 41, Yucaipa 17

DIVISION 8

Serrano 10, Lancaster 0

St. Pius X-St. Matthias 21, Salesian 14

DIVISION 9

Highland 27, Quartz Hill 14

Long Beach Wilson 32, Great Oak 13

DIVISION 10

St. Anthony 17, Garden Grove Pacifica 14

Silverado 58, South Pasadena 7

DIVISION 11

Portola 30, Baldwin Park 14

El Rancho 28, San Gorgonio 21

DIVISION 12

Palmdale 33, Mary Star of the Sea 27

Carter 70, Hacienda Heights Wilson 48

DIVISION 13

Gahr 28, Anaheim 12

Pasadena 37, Lynwood 0

DIVISION 14

San Gabriel 44, Duarte 22

Pioneer 49, Ganesha 28

8 MAN

DIVISION 1

Finals

California School for the Deaf 44, Flintridge Prep 42

DIVISION 2

Semifinals

Lancaster Baptist 38, Thacher 18

BOULDER, Colo. — Terrell Timmons Jr. was, like so many now, sold on the grandiose vision. The transfer wide receiver was convinced Colorado would make a stunning charge toward a conference title not just because of the Buffs’ famous coach — but powered by his new quarterback, Shedeur Sanders. Sanders had a direct hand in swaying many key players to take the risk.

“Two is going to take us there,” Timmons said before the start of the season.

A guarantee that, at the time, could’ve seemed a smidge idealistic.

But three months on, Colorado is not hard to find at 8-2, ranked No. 16 in the College Football Playoff rankings and in control of its own destiny in the shortening race toward a Big 12 Championship Game appearance. A Colorado win over Kansas on Saturday inside Arrowhead Stadium combined with No. 16 BYU beating No. 21 Arizona State on the road and Utah beating No. 22 Iowa State at home Saturday would clinch the Buffaloes a shot at the conference crown. They can also get there by winning out, including against Oklahoma State on Black Friday.

Yes, the Buffaloes are headlined by their effervescent head coach, Deion Sanders, the Heisman Trophy front-runner in two-way rarity Travis Hunter — and their quarterback. Shedeur Sanders is a pretentious lightning rod to some, a celebrity athlete with a celebrity father to others, and is in contention to be the first quarterback selected in next year’s NFL Draft. He has thrown for 3,222 yards and 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions through the first 10 games and is completing 72.9 percent of his passes, tied for second place in the FBS with Ohio State’s Will Howard.

But to get to where they are now, the Buffaloes needed much more. Shedeur, teammates say, knew it, which is why he went to work.

Beyond the endless reels of social media interview clips, beyond being one of the most efficient quarterbacks in college football for a second consecutive season, perhaps Shedeur Sanders’ most impressive feat was his role in aiding in building this Buffs roster.

His stardom helped lure a likely successor, too. On Thursday, Colorado landed a commitment from five-star quarterback Julian “JuJu” Lewis, a former USC commit. During Lewis’ first visit this summer to Boulder, he posed in a Colorado uniform on a gold throne as Shedeur handed him a set of keys, signifying what he would be inheriting.

Deion Sanders made no bones about flipping rosters if something isn’t up to snuff. He’s cleaned house at a historic rate. And after a humbling 4-8 season in 2023, Colorado had no choice but to beef up its offensive line and add to an already talented wide receivers group that featured Hunter, Jimmy Horn Jr. and Omarion Miller. Shedeur Sanders went recruiting, too.

Timmons said Shedeur reached out on social media to gauge interest after Timmons entered the portal from NC State last December.

“I would say 2’s approach is a very pro-mindset,” Timmons said when asked to describe working with him now on a day-to-day basis. “He’s very detailed with everything he does in the film room, on the field, off the field, everything. He’s very intelligent. You can tell he really looks up to Tom Brady with just the way he moves and operates.”

When former Ohio State running back Dallan Hayden was in Boulder on his official visit after entering the portal in April, Hayden said Shedeur wanted to sit down with him and explain what this year’s offense would need.

In January, Shedeur came across tape of former FAU wide receiver LaJohntay Wester, who had entered the portal a few weeks earlier.

“I pulled up his film, and I was recruiting him myself,” Shedeur said in April. “I pulled it up myself and was like, ‘Nah, we need this guy. This is the guy we want, this is the guy we need on the field.’”

Like his dad, Shedeur sold Wester on the vision of what it could look like if it all came together in Boulder. In his first year with the Buffaloes, Wester has nine total touchdowns and has been one of most dynamic receivers in the conference. In last week’s 49-24 win over Utah, Wester had a 76-yard punt return for a touchdown.

“He’s just a complete quarterback,” Wester said of Shedeur last month. “I’m glad to be on his side.”

LaJohntay Wester (10) has been a key addition for Colorado this season. (Ron Chenoy / Imagn Images)

Another new wideout, former Vanderbilt transfer Will Sheppard, caught two touchdowns against Utah. At 6-foot-3, Sheppard is Shedeur’s most physically imposing receiver, an ideal complement to the all-around skill of Hunter and the speed of Wester and Horn.

While the receiving corps was boosted in the offseason, Hunter remains Shedeur’s go-to option. Hunter leads the team with 74 receptions, 911 yards receiving and nine receiving touchdowns.

The pair spoke of the chemistry they’ve developed earlier this month on Shedeur’s podcast “2Legendary.”

“You’ve just got to have that brotherly bond, even outside of football,” Hunter said. “If you trust me outside of football, of course you’re going to trust me on the field.”

For this pass-happy offense to reach its apex, more trust was needed elsewhere, too. As stellar as the second year in Boulder has been for Shedeur, the first was equally maddening.

Despite being one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the country and having a 27-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio, he was also the most sacked quarterback in college football. He was sacked 52 times in 11 starts.

Shedeur called former Indiana right tackle Kahlil Benson after he went into the transfer portal last November to introduce himself. That same day, former UTEP guard Justin Mayers went into the transfer portal, and he had five missed calls from the same number. The guy who kept trying him? His future quarterback. A few months after he signed at Colorado, Mayers posted a video on his own YouTube channel of Colorado’s offensive linemen snowmobiling in the mountains above Breckenridge, Colo., with Shedeur.

One of those linemen was former five-star left tackle Jordan Seaton, who jokingly jumped out of his blocking stance shin-deep in snow with Shedeur laughing nearby. Shedeur, Seaton has said in various interviews, was one of the main reasons he chose the Buffaloes. As the race for Seaton’s signature heated up last December with other high-profile programs vying for his talent, Shedeur FaceTimed Seaton showing off his pricey diamond necklace and said, “We can shine together.”

Seaton was a mandatory blindside addition for the Buffaloes to try to keep Sanders upright. Still, the Buffaloes rank 94th in allowed pressure rate in 2024 (33.6 percent), only slightly better than last year’s brutal year in which they were 110th (36.7 percent). Shedeur and the line also have allowed 31 sacks through 10 games, which is 17 fewer sacks than this point a year ago.

Seaton said Shedeur’s desire to dissect defenses from the pocket and not overreacting to mistakes has helped his learning curve as a true freshman left tackle.

“Having a calm quarterback makes me more calm,” Seaton said last month. “It’s like Mike and Ike with me and Shedeur.”

Clint Trickett knows the range of Shedeur’s magnetism. Now Georgia Southern’s pass-game coordinator, Trickett recruited Shedeur while an assistant at Florida Atlantic four years ago. Before Shedeur joined his dad when Sanders took the Jackson State job in September 2020, Shedeur had committed to FAU.

“You want to have a quarterback who is your lead recruiter and who is that driving force, but at the same time, to have one that makes people want to come play with him, that’s not common,” Trickett said. “Most quarterbacks are all about going and getting it, but most don’t have the star power to bring them in the boat. That’s what makes him special.”

Colorado’s ambitious plan is working.

Yet Shedeur’s approach to leadership has been called into question by some. After Colorado was smoked by Nebraska in Week 2, his postgame comments about being sacked five times in comparison to none taken by Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola appeared to some like he was pointing blame at his own offensive line. In September, The Athletic’s Jim Trotter spoke to two former NFL general managers about how Shedeur’s personality and leadership style may impact how he’s viewed throughout the rigorous draft process.

“The stuff about the comments and things like that, people will worry about that a little bit, but the work ethic is the thing,” one former GM said.

On the first play of the game against Utah last week, Shedeur telegraphed a pass that was intercepted. He responded by going 30 of 40 for 340 yards, three touchdowns and completed 73 percent of his passes. Critical of himself afterward, Shedeur said he needed to “take over a little bit more” and was going to apologize to the rest of the offense.

“I can’t put the team in that type of situation,” he said. “I’m thankful for the defense. I may need to take them out to dinner this week for saving me and saving the team.”

His father has routinely said that if Shedeur is given adequate protection from his offensive line, he is good enough to win games with his talent. Deion recently said he will “privately” have a hand in which teams draft Shedeur and Hunter, speaking specifically to Shedeur on FS1’s “Speak” sports show, he wants an organization “that can handle the quarterback he is.”

The duo strolls the sidelines together before every game as Deion bestows advice on his son. “Show them who you are,” he said before the win over Utah.

Shedeur has been known to clap back at those who speak disparagingly of the Buffaloes or flaunt any number of his ritzy possessions — diamond-encrusted watches, cars, you name it — in the general direction of detractors.

Teammates say they don’t see that side of him as being a true representation of who he is. They chose to listen to what Shedeur Sanders was pitching because it’s playing out just the way he said it could. Or, in the parlance of his father, the way it always would.

“You know, he’s all on social media and famous, but he’s really a normal person,” Timmons said. “He’s not Hollywood. He’s a normal person like me and you. He’s just really good at what he does.”

 (Top photo: Dustin Bradford / Getty Images)