(CNN) -- A triumphant Lewis Hamilton called Sunday's United States Grand Prix the best race of 2012 but for many it was more important than that -- it was Formula One being reborn in the USA. Since the sport abandoned the U.S. in 2007 it has been a long road back -- but a journey F1 desperately needed to make as a global sport, especially with the bizarre 2005 race still fresh in some minds. Yet its first job of finding a new home was fraught with frustration. After the Indianapolis Motor Speedway lost its contract to host F1, the Texan city of Austin successfully bid to stage the race on a purpose-built track.
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Sunday's Grand Prix in Austin ended the sport's five-year absence from the United States
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A near capacity crowd of 117,500 turned out to witness Lewis Hamilton win the race
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Hopes are high that an American driver can fuel the sport's limited popularity in the U.S.
Despite those reservations, Austin embraced @placeholder over the GP weekend with Texan bonhomie, barbeques and what amounted to a 24-hour festival of live music in downtown's throbbing hub.