Will the new Andretti team be racing in Formula 1? Several big hurdles need to be addressed for this to happen, and Andretti have now confirmed a significant issue has been resolved with a big signing, namely of an engine supply. The team also indicates which driver would be racing in one of their cars.

Will there really be an eleventh team in Formula 1 soon? Mario and son Michael Andretti want to enter the pinnacle of motorsport with their racing team. If the entry succeeds – whether in 2024 or 2026 – the engine supplier has already been decided – and probably also the first driver.

“I’m allowed to say it now,”

Mario Andretti has big plans. The 1978 world champion wants to return to Formula 1 with his own team. For some time now, the US-American has never tired of emphasising that he is ready for the top class of motorsport. In an interview with the Youtube channel of IndyCar expert David Land, Andretti now emphasised that from his side it could start immediately.

“The right factory that we need will be built in the UK,” Andretti said. To this end, he had brought “prominent names” on board as well as “some start-ups”. Meanwhile, it is also clear who will supply the team planned as Andretti-Cadillac with engines.

“I’m allowed to say it now,” Andretti explained: “We have a formal agreement regarding the supply of engines, and it’s with Renault.”

Andretti in F1 “could be interesting”

Fittingly, Laurent Rossi, the CEO of Alpine (formerly Renault F1) had also revealed around the presentation of the new F1 racer that “we have reached an agreement with Andretti to supply them with a powertrain if they get their licence for Formula 1.”

But the success or otherwise is now in the hands of the US racing team, he said. “If they are in, we will be happy to join them. If they don’t, it means that all in all it didn’t work out,” Rossi said.

Bruno Famin, Executive Director at Alpine, also stressed that an Andretti entry with an Alpine/Renault engine under the bonnet could bring many benefits. “Having a second or third team [with our engine in the rear, ed] could be interesting because it offers more experience, for example more pre-season testing days. It could be interesting,” Famin said.

Andretti F1’s primary choice driver

Andretti’s first driver would be Colton Herta, according to the latest reports from the USA. The 22-year-old US American has been active in the IndyCar Series since 2018, where he drove for Andretti Autosport in recent years.

Herta’s name is one of note in Formula 1, with Red Bull Racing’s attempt to secure the Indycar drivers’ services for Alpha Tauri for the 2023 season revealed what many believe to be flaw in the FIA’s super license qualifying system. Despite winning 7 IndyCar races in his three years Herta failed to accumulate enough points to qualify for a drive in Formula One.

 READ MORE Have Alpine sunk the Andretti-Cadillac F1 bid?