Rory McIlroy revealed trackside at Saturday's F1 sprint race in Austin that he and Shane Lowry had needed a week to recover from their post-Ryder Cup celebrations.
McIlroy was a guest of Alpine F1 team for sprint Saturday at the US Grand Prix, after he and a whole host of superstar athletes this week joined an investment group buying stakes in the French outfit.
The OtroCapital group owns a 24% stake in Renault's F1 outfit, and McIlroy was joined by boxer Anthony Joshua, footballers Trent Alexander-Arnold and Juan Mata, and NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce in investing in the group's efforts.
After Team Europe's success at the Ryder Cup earlier this month, McIlroy brought the trophy to show around on American soil, being pictured with Alpine drivers Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon.
Speaking to Sky F1 at the race, McIlroy revealed that he and Shane Lowry had partied long after the conclusion of things in Rome, and that it had taken quite some time for the pair to recover.
READ HERE: LIV Player Takes Shot At Rory McIlroy & Tiger Woods Over New Golf League
READ HERE: Team Europe Definitely Made The Most Of Ryder Cup Celebrations After Win Over USA
Rory McIlroy confirms his post-Ryder Cup partying with Shane Lowry was wild
Shane Lowry was not only central to maintaining team Europe's spirits during Ryder Cup weekend, but he was fairly clear as the leader of the celebrations after the event as well.
He joked in an interview immediately after halving the final game of the tournament against Jordan Spieth that he hoped to get Rory McIlroy out to Florida to continue the party - and, judging by McIlroy's trackside chat on Saturday, he was successful.
READ HERE: Shane Lowry Accidentally Produces Foul-Mouthed Outburst On American TV
"Really excited! It's a great opportunity!" 😁
Rory McIlroy on investing in Alpine... 🤝 pic.twitter.com/i4uWBtHIvG— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 21, 2023
READ HERE: US Vice-Captain Reveals Shane Lowry's Furious Reaction To Rory McIlroy Caddie Incident
READ HERE: Shane Lowry Stole The Show At Europe's Winning Ryder Cup Press Conference
In an interview with Sky Sports F1, Rory McIlroy revealed that he and Shane Lowry had indeed continued partying Stateside - and that the celebrations had taken their toll on the Irish pair:
Oh, absolutely. So much so that we kept the party going when we got back to the States the week after as well.
I think Shane and I needed to recover for a week after having a week enjoying ourselves.
Ryder Cups only come along every two years...I've been on the losing side of them and it feels awful so, when you do win them, you have to celebrate them. Shane and I definitely did that!
McIlroy went on to say that there was something special about winning a team event in an individual sport, and that he and the group of investors hoped to bring that team spirit to Alpine:
Saturday night was a little bit hard, the way the whole day ended. But it galvanised us as a team, and we really went out there on Sunday with huge purpose and everybody invested in what we were doing. It looked a bit tight. Sunday afternoon, there was a bit of a stage where it didn't look great, but a couple of the guys pulled out their matches later on.
We're individual sportspeople, so we don't get to be part of a team very often. When we win individual tournaments, it's great and you can celebrate with your friends and with your family, but I don't think there's anything like winning and being part of a team, and everyone being invested in the same goal.
As you said, hopefully we'll bring some of that spirit into the Alpine Formula One team.
Rory McIlroy will next be in action at November's DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, hoping to seal his third triumph at the event.
Meanwhile, lights out at the US GP on Sunday is at 8pm Irish time. Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon line up 7th and 8th respectively on the grid on Sunday, with Charles Leclerc on pole position for Ferrari.
SEE ALSO: Shane Lowry Gives Thomas Cheeky Ryder Cup Dig On Instagram
