With the F1 race series machine picking up and relocating from Singapore to Austin, Texas in the USA, there was no Grand Prix. Typically, when that happens, we shift to picking up the stories in and around the team. These range from the announcement of a new supplier, a few new race-specific pieces of team merch from adidas, and a closer look at Nico Hulkenberg’s best 2026 grand prix performance yet.
AUDI REVOLUT F1 TEAM ANNOUNCES ÖHLINS AS OFFICIAL DAMPER SUPPLIER
Audi Revolut F1 Team has named Öhlins its official damper supplier, formalizing a relationship that already included a joint development program focused on engineering, testing and refining damper performance. Announced on October 15, the agreement also includes plans to explain the technology behind the dampers and their role in a Formula 1 car.
The partnership extends a longstanding relationship between Öhlins and Audi Sport. Öhlins supplied dampers for several generations of Audi’s Le Mans prototypes during its 1999–2016 campaign, which produced 13 overall victories, and for the Audi A4 DTM introduced in 2004. The Formula 1 agreement brings that technical collaboration into another factory racing program during Audi’s debut season.
NEW ADIDAS MERCH FOR U.S. & MEXICAN GRANDS PRIX
Though not as extensive as the Singapore collection, at least thus far, we’re seeing evidence of new adidas merch aligned with the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, TX and the Mexican Grand Prix. We’re still early in the process in both cases, finding a Mexican GP T-shirt only on the adidas store and a Mexican GP hat only on the Audi store. All other SKUs are in both stores. In our experience it all eventually aligns and more SKUs could be forthcoming, but we have checked both stores to be thorough and give our readers a IYKYK leg up since it appears some of the Singapore inventories are already exhausted just a week after the race.
Thus far, we only know of one SKU set for Texas. Billed as the Austin Driver’s Cap, its slightly faded blue color is referred to as “Dusky Petrol”. A large red and white patch on the front shows the Audi rings – the patch perhaps a nod to the American West and the red, white and blue color way of course a nod to the USA. The stars on the bill harken graphics on the grounds of the U.S. Grand Prix’s Circuit of the Americas home base.
For Mexico, we’ve got two T-shirt designs and a driver’s cap. Artwork on the white Mexico Tee I (found in both online stores) pays tribute to Mexico City’s Dia de los Muertos festival depicting a skull in a driver’s helmet. A second black T-shirt dubbed Mexico Tee II found only in the adidas store (for now) pays tribute to the same but with a different design. Finally, a black Mexico Driver Cap found only in the Audi Revolut F1 store (for now) has a subtle muted black on black pattern that seems to hark the Mexico Tee II, but also embraces adidas’ Adilenium Season 3 design that focuses on early 2000s street wear designs.
NICO VS. GEORGE, THE GERMAN’S BEST 2026 DRIVE YET
Nico Hülkenberg’s Singapore performance is worthy of a closer look, one highlighted in greater detail on Formula1.com. Seventh in the Sprint and eighth in the Grand Prix earned Nico six points, making it his highest-scoring weekend of 2026.
Hülkenberg qualified 11th but moved into tenth on the grid following George Russell’s power unit penalties. A strong opening lap then put him ahead of Pierre Gasly and Arvid Lindblad, establishing the track position that shaped his afternoon. He spent much of the race pursuing Liam Lawson, with little separating the Audi, Racing Bulls and Alpine on pace.
The real test came over the final 10 laps, when Russell caught Hülkenberg after recovering from 19th on the grid. Despite the Mercedes having more pace, Hülkenberg maintained speed and positioned his Audi to limit Russell’s passing opportunities without defending excessively.
Closing the gap to Lawson also helped Hülkenberg pick up a tow on the straights, giving him valuable additional straight-line speed. As his rhythm improved, he was able to open a gap to Russell while bringing Lawson back within reach.
The eighth-place finish provided a welcome result after Hülkenberg had lost points-paying positions late in both Baku and Sepang. Formula1.com’s account highlights how his opening-lap judgment and measured defense combined to turn competitive midfield pace into Audi’s strongest points haul of the season so far.
NEXT UP: AUSTIN
Stay tuned for coverage of the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, TX coming up next.
