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Circuit of The Americas(tm) opens FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX(tm) celebration with The Starting Grid luncheon featuring two-time Academy Award(r)-winning filmmaker Ron Howard

(September 11, 2012)

Austin, Texas, Sept. 11, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Circuit of The Americas and the Circuit Events
Host Committee today announced that two-time Academy Award®-winning
filmmaker Ron Howard (2013's Rush) will
be the special celebrity guest at The Starting
Grid, the official kick-off luncheon for festivities
leading up to the FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND
PRIX™. The luncheon is set for Thursday, Nov.
1, at the downtown Hilton Hotel, located at 500 East 4th
Street in Austin. KTBC FOX 7 Sports Anchor Dave Cody will serve as
master of ceremonies for the event, which begins at 11:30 a.m.
CST.

Ron Howard has become an entertainment legend as
a director, producer and actor. He has directed worldwide
blockbusters including A Beautiful Mind, Apollo
13, Backdraft, Cinderella Man,
Cocoon, How the Grinch Stole Christmas,
Parenthood, Ransom, Splash, The Da
Vinci Code, and many more. He received Oscars® for Best
Director and Best Picture in 2001 for A Beautiful Mind and
was nominated for Best Director in 2008 for
Frost/Nixon.

Howard will give luncheon attendees an inside
look at his upcoming epic-action drama, Rush, which stars
Chris Hemsworth (The Avengers) as the charismatic
Englishman James Hunt and Daniel Brühl (Inglourious
Basterds) as the disciplined Austrian perfectionist Niki
Lauda, whose clashes on the Formula 1™ Grand Prix racetrack
epitomized the contrast between these two extraordinary characters,
a distinction reflected in their private lives. Rush is
currently in postproduction and will be released on Sept. 20,
2013.

"We are thrilled to have Ron Howard, a gifted
entertainer and true American treasure, as our special guest for
the official kick-off to Formula 1™ festivities in Austin, said
Circuit Events Host Committee Executive Director Sandy West. "F1™
will make its grand re-entry to the United States in Central Texas
this November, and it's serendipitous to have one of the most
dramatic, real-life F1 stories debuting on the big screen shortly
after. While he was directing Rush, Mr. Howard spent
several months immersed in the world of Formula 1, learning about
its history, politics and personalities. We look forward to
learning more about his on-set experience and his insights into the
sport's past and present."

Texas Governor Rick Perry and Austin Mayor Lee
Leffingwell are expected to address luncheon attendees, along with
two of Circuit of The Americas' founding partners, Bobby Epstein
and Red McCombs.

Tickets for The Starting Grid start at
$55 per person or $500 for a table of eight and may be purchased
online at

https://oss.ticketmaster.com/aps/cota/EN/link/buy/browse.

VIP tables are also available with the purchase
of a sponsorship package. VIP ticket holders and all
sponsorship tables receive priority seating for the luncheon and an
invitation to attend a VIP Reception featuring special guest Ron
Howard. Interested parties should e-mail Sandy Walker at
cehc@circuitoftheamericas.com
for descriptions and additional benefits of the available
sponsorship packages.

Proceeds from The Starting Grid will
benefit Seton Breast Cancer Center and Dell Children's Blood and
Cancer Center.

The FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX will be
held Nov. 16-18, 2012, at Circuit of The Americas. Premium
seating options are still available. For more information, contact
a Circuit sales representative at 512.301.6600.

About Circuit of The
Americas

Circuit of The Americas will be a world-class
destination for performance, entertainment, education and business.
It will be the first purpose-built Grand Prix facility in the
United States designed for any and all classes of racing, from
motor power to human power, and is the U.S. home to the 2012
FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX™ Nov. 16-18.

The Circuit of The Americas' master plan
features a variety of permanent structures designed for business,
education, entertainment and race use. Its signature element will
be a 3.4-mile circuit track. Other support buildings will include
an expansive outdoor live music space, a conference center, banquet
facilities and a state-of-the-art medical facility. Future proposed
amenities include a driving/riding experience, a motorsports
driving club, kart track, grand plaza event center and tower, and a
trackside recreational vehicle park. For more information and
downloadable video, audio and photos, visit: www.CircuitofTheAmericas.com.

About Rush

Two-time Academy Award^® winner Ron
Howard (A Beautiful Mind, Frost/Nixon), teams
once again with fellow two-time Academy Award nominee, writer Peter
Morgan (Frost/Nixon, The Queen), on
Rush, a spectacular big-screen re-creation of the
merciless 1970s rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda.

The epic action-drama stars Chris Hemsworth
(The Avengers) as the charismatic Englishman James Hunt
and Daniel Brühl (Inglourious Basterds) as the disciplined
Austrian perfectionist Niki Lauda, whose clashes on the Grand Prix
racetrack epitomized the contrast between these two extraordinary
characters, a distinction reflected in their private
lives.

Set against the sexy and glamorous golden age of
Formula 1 racing, Rush portrays the exhilarating true
story of two of the greatest rivals the world has ever
witnessed--handsome English playboy Hunt and his methodical,
brilliant opponent, Lauda. Taking us into their personal lives on
and off the track, Rush follows the two drivers as they
push themselves to the breaking point of physical and psychological
endurance, where there is no shortcut to victory and no margin for
error. If you make one mistake, you die.

Also starring Olivia Wilde (TRON:
Legacy) and Alexandra Maria Lara (The Reader),
Rush is produced by Andrew Eaton (A Mighty
Heart), Howard, Academy Award winner Brian Grazer (Apollo
13, A Beautiful Mind), Eric Fellner (Senna,
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy), Morgan and Brian Oliver
(Black Swan) and executive produced by Cross Creek
Pictures, Exclusive Media, Todd Hallowell and Tim Bevan. Universal
Pictures will distribute the film in North America.

Rush was shot on location in the United
Kingdom, Germany and Austria. For more information, visit www.rushmovie.com.

-END-

CONTACT: Ali Putnam
Office: 512.301.6600
Ali.Putnam@circuitoftheamericas.com

Page: 1

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