"What a rush": Brad Pitt's reaction to testing McLaren 2023 F1 challenger

Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt claimed that it was a "rush" for him to drive the 2023 McLaren F1 challenger around the Circuit of the Americas last week. The Academy Award winner plays the role of Sonny Hayes in the "F1" movie, which also stars Javier Bardem, Kerry Condon, and Damson Idris.

Both Pitt and Idris had rigorous training sessions in pre-production to get accustomed to the behavior required for a racing career, as the project vowed to be the "most authentic racing movie ever."

Last week, Brad Pitt got his first taste of Formula 1 machinery when he drove the MCL60 around the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. The ApexGP cars featured in the movie were modeled after F2 cars, developed with assistance from the Mercedes F1 crew, and cleverly masked as F1 cars using advanced camera technologies.

The Woking-based outfit shared a video of Brad Pitt getting out of the car after doing laps on their Instagram handle, where the 60-year-old could be seen giving his initial thoughts on the experience, saying:

"Oh my God, what a rush!! A lot bigger horse than I've been on. What a rush,"

The footage of his drive in the MCL60 TPC will be released on Sky Sports in the coming weeks.

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Brad Pitt chimes in on his test with the McLaren F1 at COTA

Hollywood actor Brad Pitt described his experience of driving the McLaren 2023 challenger around COTA as "extraordinary".

On his appearance on the Beyond the Grid podcast, the 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' actor reflected:

“You’re just in this, like, sublime groove. It is really extraordinary. And I try to explain this feeling of downforce, and I fail every time because you try to say, like, a roller coaster, but that’s not even right because you feel a fulcrum point underneath you. You’re in it.”

“I got to hit 197 (miles per hour) this week. I really wanted to hit 200, it hurts me a little bit. Three miles per hour short on the straight. I’ve never experienced anything that’s just a more feeling of presence in my life because you’re so focused, but you’re not white knuckling.”

The superstar expressed his gratitude towards McLaren CEO Zak Brown and driver Lando Norris for helping him, adding:

"This is such a unique feeling and an absolute high. I’m still on a high. I really am. I’m just still on a high. And I can’t thank Zak Brown and the team enough and spent the day out with Lando. And just what a high.”

The "F1" movie will release worldwide on June 25 and has been shot during real race weekends across the 2023 and 2024 seasons.