During Saturday's qualifying rounds, I could hear the crowd
chanting as I walked through the grandstands even with the earplugs in my ears
to dampen the sound of the screaming Formula One engines.
It was hard to tell what they were saying at first, until
their voices became louder and they competed with the sounds of the cars.
"Che-Co! Che-co! Che-co!" Then a minute later, it was clear to
everyone what these fans were saying. "CHE-CO! CHE-CO! CHE-CO!"
These people were the thousands of fans who came out to the
Circuit of the Americas
to turn Mexican driver Sergio "Checo" Perez into the inaugural U.S.
Grand Prix's unlikely local hero.
Out here at the circuit, you see scores of people dressed in
blue Red Bull garb because Sebastian Vettel has been so dominant in recent
years. And there are an even greater number of fans wearing Ferrari red
because, well, they're Ferrari — they are to open-wheel racing what the Yankees
are to baseball.
But there has also been a huge and somewhat unexpected
contingent of fans dressed in white or draped in Mexican flags to cheer on
Perez, the 22-year-old Sauber Ferrari driver who is one of F1's most exciting
up-and-comers. In case you didn't know, Perez will be racing for McLaren next
year, taking Lewis Hamilton's spot as he moves to Mercedes.
Maybe Perez is not such an unlikely hero. Texas
used to be Mexico
until a war was fought for independence. This state has a huge population of
Mexican-Americans, Mexican immigrants and Mexican nationals who call it home.
And Austin is
only about 235 miles from the Mexican border. Plus, Perez is the only North
American currently competing in F1.
For these reasons and more, the circuit has seen a
tremendous turnout of people who are rooting for Perez. I've taken to calling
it "Checomania," and Austin
has it bad.
Continue reading about Sergio "Checo" Perez race in Austin, Texas at Jalopnik.com!
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