No Super Lap Battle at COTA for 2026

Back in 2013, it cost $55,000/day to rent COTA for an event.  If the group needs to "regroup financially" I can understand cutting costs like this.

Coniglio Rampante said:

Back in 2013, it cost $55,000/day to rent COTA for an event.  If the group needs to "regroup financially" I can understand cutting costs like this.

Scuttle-butt is that its twice that now.

Further, the event felt a little dead last year.  Lots of down time that had been occupied by GLTC.  The move to a spring date rather than the traditional February did not mesh well with GridLife schedules.

Lots of other COTA changes also fueling the rumor mill.  I have heard the plans and it's not a good thing for grassroots/club level drivers.

SCCA used to run a race at COTA in February. First race was packed!!! I worked grid and we did not have enough room for the SM or SRF cars. It was a great event. Each year after a few less cars, but still a great event. Track is too expensive and has some rules that make it tough for a car club to put on an event there!

At the end of the day, renting a track needs to make sense financially, no matter how awesome it would be to do so.

What are they going to do? Make it into a concert venue with the F1 and a few more pro events? 

In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it certainly feels like race tracks can't be profitable by just being a race track.

Anymore, it's like you have to have a venue that can hold motorsport events, as well as concerts, (non-motorsport) sporting events and anything else you can use to pack people in on the property.

Colin Wood said:

In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it certainly feels like race tracks can't be profitable by just being a race track.

Anymore, it's like you have to have a venue that can hold motorsport events, as well as concerts, (non-motorsport) sporting events and anything else you can use to pack people in on the property.

So when PCA rents the track every year its not really going to pack in that many people. Most amateur events will just be drivers, workers and a few friends helping to work on cars in the pits. Not like a Taylor Swift concert or something like that. But then even with the concerts and the pro events, the track is still going to sit empty most of the year. You would think that renting it out to a few people would be better than not renting it out at all. 

Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) said

So when PCA rents the track every year its not really going to pack in that many people. Most amateur events will just be drivers, workers and a few friends helping to work on cars in the pits. Not like a Taylor Swift concert or something like that. But then even with the concerts and the pro events, the track is still going to sit empty most of the year. You would think that renting it out to a few people would be better than not renting it out at all. 

COTA gets a lot of rentals from manufacturers for ride and drives, as well as race team groups.  Also, there are private rentals for high end car groups.  It doesn't sit all that idle.

SLB tries to be all-encompassing in order to draw spectators.  They rely on that spectator income.  In addition to the on-track action, there's drifting, a car show, and various paddock activation marketing activities.  All of that requires a lot more personnel than just a track day, since it's spread out all over the facility.

Andy Hollis said:

Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) said

So when PCA rents the track every year its not really going to pack in that many people. Most amateur events will just be drivers, workers and a few friends helping to work on cars in the pits. Not like a Taylor Swift concert or something like that. But then even with the concerts and the pro events, the track is still going to sit empty most of the year. You would think that renting it out to a few people would be better than not renting it out at all. 

COTA gets a lot of rentals from manufacturers for ride and drives, as well as race team groups.  Also, there are private rentals for high end car groups.  It doesn't sit all that idle.

That still doesn't pack in a whole lot of people. In fact, they probably don't want a lot of people in there for some of those rentals. The car shows and drifting events probably pack in a lot of people. 

I recall reading years ago that the property at COTA was in use in one way or another 300 days per year, and I think it's even more busy now than ever.  Racing, concerts, karts, corporate events, cycling, month-long Christmas festival, consumer vehicle testing, racing series testing, are just some of the events of which I'm aware and there's a lot I know nothing about.  
 

I have a link to a report on what's currently being developed and what's potentially coming that some may find interesting.  It's all about developing multiple revenue streams.

https://www.constructconnect.com/construction-economic-news/circuit-of-the-americas-expands-for-texans-looking-for-fun-in-the-sun
 

TL;DR executive summary:  the article lists the following: COTA Land (an amusement park), RV park, car condos priced from $500,000 to $2.3 million, a clubhouse, a hotel, etc.  All total, filings with the state suggest $105 million in development.  

The thread has strayed a long way from the Super Lap Battle, but hopefully this paints a broader picture of what is happening at the facility and the direction it is heading.  Prospective event organizers are going to have to "pay to play" more than ever.