Tavo Hellmund

Tavo Hellmund

Tavo Hellmund (b. February 24, 1966; Austin, Texas) is an Mexican-American former racing driver and promoter. He is responsible for the United States Grand Prix held in Austin, Texas, with the first race 16–18 November 2012. Hellmund and his partners are responsible for building the 3.427-mile (5.513 km) Circuit of the Americas in Travis County, Texas.^[1] Tavo Hellmund is also responsible for bringing back the Mexican Grand Prix being held in Mexico City. Mexico, with the first race 30 October–1 November 2015.^[2]

Racing career

Hellmund, a native of Austin, Texas, competed in the British Formula 3 Championship in 1995 and 1996,^[3] and won races in NASCAR, K&N Pro Series West, SCCA-sanctioned events, including the Winston West race in 2001.^[4]

Racing promoter

Hellmund's father, Gustavo Hellmund-Rosas, was a racing promoter, having promoted the CART Copa Mexico 150 in 1980 and 1981. Tavo promoted the Texas Racefest, a NASCAR / USAC regional short-track event from 2005–2009.^[5]

United States Grand Prix

Hellmund's relationship with Bernie Ecclestone (CEO of Formula One Management and Formula One Administration) has spanned nearly 40 years.^[6]

In July 2010, Hellmund announced he had signed a deal with Formula One in April to return the United States Grand Prix to the F1 schedule in 2012. The Austin circuit was sketched then designed by Hellmund and engineered by Herman Tilke and Peter Wahl, whom he hired to complete the 5.513 km circuit.^[7]

Mexican Grand Prix

In July 2014, Bernie Ecclestone confirmed the Mexican Grand Prix would return to the F1 schedule in the 2015 Formula One season. The revived Mexican Grand Prix is driven by two key figures, Tavo Hellmund mastermind of the F1 USGP in Austin Texas and his counterpart in Mexico, Alejandro Soberon, chief executive of Grupo CIE.^[8] On Sunday November 1, 2015 the Mexican Grand Prix welcomed a race-day attendance of 134,850, and the three-day mark was 335,850.^[9] Three-time world champion and current Mercedes chairman Niki Lauda told reporters after the Mexican Grand Prix, “It was the best I’ve ever seen in my whole life.” ^[10] David Tremayne of the Straits Times wrote, ”Now, that's a serious audience. As an object lesson in how to organise a grand prix, Hellmund's team set a new benchmark, and for this, the sport should be grateful”.^[11]

References

1. "Formula 1 website". Retrieved 2012-10-17.
2. "Forbes: Formula One's Billion Dollar Man". Retrieved 2014-08-23.
3. Åberg, Andreas. "The racing career of Tavo Hellmund — in detail". Driver Database. Archived from the original on 21 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
4. "Recent Tavo (CT) Hellmund Driver Statistics". RacingWest.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
5. Press release. "2009 Allstate Texas Racefest: USAC, TSRS and "Dash for Cash" run". RacingWest.com. RacingWest.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
6. Cooper, Adam. "Bernie Ecclestone Q&A: "I don't know what the American public want to see…"". Adam Cooper's F1 Blog. Archived from the original on 21 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
7. Llewellyn-Stevens, Gareth. "Tavo Hellmund promises 'amazing' US Grand Prix venue". The Sport Review. Archived from the original on 21 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
8. Sylt, Christian. "Ecclestone Confirms Mexican Grand Prix Will Return In 2015". Forbes. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
9. Maher, John. "After F1 success in Austin and Mexico, what's next for Tavo Hellmund?". Austin American Statesman. Retrieved 10 Nov 2015.
10. Maher, John. "After F1 success in Austin and Mexico, what's next for Tavo Hellmund?". Austin American Statesman. Retrieved 10 Nov 2015.
11. Tremayne, David. "Formula 1: Mexican fans lap up homecoming after 23-year absence". The Straits Times. Retrieved 3 Nov 2015.