Source: People
Monday 23 October 2023 17:22:57
Prince Harry is feeling the need for speed!
The Duke of Sussex, 39, was all smiles as he toured the pit lane and team garages at the Formula 1 U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas on Sunday.
Prince Harry was a guest of Mercedes F1 at the Circuit of the Americas and was seen chatting with British driver George Russell and Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff ahead of the race start.
He was joined at the race by his friend and BetterUp CEO Alexi Robichaux. The Duke of Sussex has served as Chief Impact Officer for the coaching platform since March 2021.
Prince Harry also visited the Red Bull team garage and spent time talking to Team Principal Christian Horner, the husband of Spice Girl Geri Halliwell-Horner.
In a video shared by Red Bull Racing on Instagram, Harry and Horner, 49, could be seen hugging and chatting enthusiastically. “Welcoming Harry to the garage 🇬🇧#F1 #RedBullRacing #USGP,” the post was captioned.
F1 also gave the Duke of Sussex a shout-out on their Instagram page, captioning a carousel of images: "Welcome back to COTA, Harry!"
Other celebrities in attendance at the event included Joe Jonas, Sha'Carri Richardson, Chloe Grace Moretz, Drew Barrymore and Gayle King.
The F1 race was won by three-time world champion Max Verstappen. Lewis Hamilton, who finished in second place, was later disqualified for a technical infringement, according to BBC Sport.
Prince Harry is known to be an F1 fan. In March 2020, he teamed up with Hamilton, 38, to open the Silverstone Experience museum in the U.K. which is dedicated to the past, present and future of British motor racing.
The visit was part of Harry’s final round of royal engagements before he and his wife, Meghan Markle, stepped back from their senior roles in the royal family and relocated to her home state of California.
Harry’s appearance at the race on Sunday comes after he and Meghan, 42, recently returned to the U.S. following a secret Caribbean getaway.
The couple was photographed arriving at an Atlanta airport earlier this month after they spent time on vacation in the Caribbean.
Before their trip, Meghan and Harry had made their most recent public appearance in New York City to mark World Mental Health Day on Oct. 10. The pair hosted their Archewell Foundation's first in-person event and joined a panel of parents to discuss the negative effects the digital world can have on children.
The summit, called "The Archewell Foundation Parents’ Summit: Mental Wellness in a Digital Age," featured parents who had experienced tragic loss connected to their child’s social media use.
During the event, the pair touched on how becoming parents to son Prince Archie, 4, and daughter Princess Lilibet, 2, inspired them to make social media a better place.