Last Updated on February 1 2024, 6:38 am
The world is beginning to react to the decision by Formula One’s commercial owners to exclude the Andretti Motorsport Organisation from their sport. The American based team competes in Indycar, IMSA, Indy NXT, Formula E, Supercars Championship but apparently they’re not competent to race in Formula One.
The Liberty Media company that runs their interest FOM issued a statement questioning whether the Andretti organisation had a clue what it took to ruin and F1 team. Andretti said they were ready to enter the sport in 2025 with their own car design and a Renault power unit in the back.
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But in 2026 the car design regulations will change significantly and FOM said this “gives us reason to question their understanding of the scope of the challenge involved”.
Of course this is also a swipe at the FIA who spent 6 months studying the Andretti proposal and finally gave it the green light whilst rejecting four others. It is the FIA who have the legal right to decide on the entrants to the sport, but Liberty Media are fleecing their muscles to challenge the competency of F1’s governing body.
The bottom line is the farcical situation is really all about money. Should Andretti join Formula One either the current teams have to share a diluted prix money purse of Liberty Media has to cough up extra to reward the eleventh team.
Yet Formula One’s constitution allows for up to twelve teams and the argument is that the current ten have enjoyed an incremental share of the price fund while two slots on the grid have remained vacant for years.
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One of Liberty Media’s arguments is that Andretti does not add value to Formula One and only if General Motors via Cadillac produce a power unit would this criteria be met. The American auto manufacturer has stated it will only be ready to produce a power unit for the 2028 season so Liberty concedes maybe then will their added value criteria be met.
However, it is farcical that Formula One has another team who is woefully financed by its owner and is the perennial ‘bottom of the pile’ competitor in Haas F1. Haas add little value to the sport but are already inside the elite club and so its methodology and performance goes unquestioned.
Haas F1 does not design its own car, the chassis is produced by Dellara and it buys most of its other components from top team Ferrari. Yet it continues to underperform and when Red Bull employ the same methodology with their junior team – the insanely named Visa Cash App Red Bull team – it will wipe the floor in 2024 with its American owned competitor.
US competitors in the Indycar series have commented on the decision by Liberty Media with Conor Daly citing it as “one of the top 5 dumbest statements I’ve ever read.”
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Indycar is North America’s premier single seater motor racing series and has the champions decided at the last race in 18 of the last twenty seasons. During the season multiple drivers win races and the edge ebbs and flows between a number of the teams who are entered in the series.
Graham Rahal stated, “F1 is an elitist sport. They don’t want us. Remember that. They want US companies money, they want wealthy US individuals money. But they don’t care about the rest. Always has been that way, always will be.”
Team owner Graham Rahal responded to the news stating
“F1 is an elitist sport. They don’t want us. Remember that. They want US companies money, they want wealthy US individuals money. But they don’t care about the rest. Always has been that way, always will be.”
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He added, “Oh wait. Another thing i said and got tremendous hate for it. You guys seeing it yet? Is it making sense yet? Andretti Global should be in there.”
Top racer and series challenger Scott McLaughlin responded to the news, “A racing series wants to expand into America. But won’t allow any more American teams in it. Makes sense.”
“It’s alright. Take your 10 teams. We will have 27 cars within a second in a few weeks, having zero idea Sunday morning who’s going to win the race. All the very best. LFG Indycar.”
Fans and F1 writers are united in their opinions expressed through polls and articles that Formula One should have more than just 10 teams and twenty cars. Yet those who stand to benefit the most from the sport financially are deaf to their audience when it comes to this topic.
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The FIA who sanctioned the Andretti entry have as yet been silent on the news from Liberty Media, yet it is almost certain they won’t take the response from F1’s American owners lying down.
Andretti Motorsport also will surely respond aggressively as TJ13 has reported challenging the decision on ‘anti competitive grounds’ in the law courts of the USA.
For now legend Mario Andretti revealed just that he is “gutted” by Formula One managements stamens and the organisation resounded stating their work on designing and building a Formula One cars continues unabated.
“Andretti Cadillac has reviewed the information Formula One Management Limited has shared and strongly disagree with its contents,” it announced.
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“Andretti and Cadillac are two successful global motorsports organisations committed to placing a genuine American works team in F1, competing alongside the world’s best.
“We are proud of the significant progress we have already made on developing a highly competitive car and power unit with an experienced team behind it, and our work continues at pace.
“Andretti Cadillac would also like to acknowledge and thank the fans who have expressed their support.”
The owners of Formula One are pursuing the American dollar with new races in Miami and Las Vegas taking centre stage in the past two years. And while US company sponsorship has more than doubled in the past five years, viewership peaked in 2023 falling back from its record numbers who watched on TV in 2022.
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Around 1 million watch F1 on TV in the US, while the bulk of the audience remains in Europe and a staggering average of 70 million view each Grand Prix weekend.
It seems as though there are personal grievances being aired against Andretti who were aggressive in making their claim to join Formula One.
F1 expert Mark Gallagher recently penned an article where he revealed a number of F1 senior personnel revealed to him they were upset about how Michael Andretti arrived in Monaco last year publicly demanding support for his team’s F1 entry.
“Of course, it’s not even just about the money. It is, I’m told, also about the manner of the way in which Michael Andretti has gone about it,” said Gallagher.
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“There is a degree of personal acrimony. It might be too strong a word, but a lot of the teams really did not appreciate the way Michael Andretti went about trying to kickstart his entry, turning up in Monte Carlo with a sheet of paper saying: ‘Sign here and let me have a slice of the action.’
“I think they felt it was a backdoor grab to come in.”
Yet this is rich from the members of the famously named Piranha Club of elite F1 bosses who regularly take each opportunity to put their rivals down.
F1 is a competitive sport both on a off the track and the way the media is engaged to either support or oppose someones agenda is merely part and part of life in the bubble that is the handful of people ruling the roost in the paddock.
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With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
