Just weeks after a dominant victory over a team of American golfers at the Marco Simone golf course in Rome, Team Europe's Rory McIlroy paraded the trophy that the USA lost at its own F1 Grand Prix.

McIlroy brought the Ryder Cup with him to the paddock at the Circuit of the Americas outside of Austin, Texas on Saturday - as the sprint race for the United States Grand Prix took place.

The Irishman recently became a part-owner in the Alpine Formula One team - alongside the likes of boxer Anthony Joshua and NFL superstars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

While visiting with his two drivers - Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon, both of France - the golfer showed off the trophy Europe just won back.

Then the two drivers decided to show off some of their golfing skills in some sort of a putting challenge.

McIlroy was one of just many celebrities that were on hand for the preamble to Sunday's main event.

Earlier in the day at the F1 Academy race, actress Chloe Grace Moretz was given the honor of waving the checkered flag.

In addition to Moretz and McIlroy, longtime television host Gayle King was on hand in Austin.

Native Texan and American track star Sha'Carri Richardson was also watching these speed machines - giving out the trophies to each of the podium place finishers from the sprint.

By the end of the day, it was Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen who did the double - getting pole for the sprint and then winning the race.

Verstappen didn't even make it close - beating out second-place finisher Lewis Hamilton by a whopping eight seconds over the 19 lap race.

Qualifying for Sunday's main event took place on Friday afternoon - with Charles Leclerc taking pole position.

Verstappen had what would have been a pole-setting lap deleted after he went past the track limits on Turn 19. He starts in P6.