New claim that F1 asked General Motors to ditch Andretti
Andretti are still waiting confirmation from F1 and the teams - from a commercial perspective - that their application to join the grid for 2025 or 2026 has been approved.
The FIA has given their blessing to Andretti, however, the resistance from F1 has seemingly gone up a notch.
As reported by AP, F1 has allegedly asked General Motors whether they’d be interested in partnering up with another team, not just Andretti.
Quite clearly, F1 hopes GM would be keen to join forces with one of the existing teams, which would in turn de-stabilise and worsen Andretti’s bid.
Without GM’s backing, F1 could potentially argue that Andretti doesn’t have the means to be an 11th team nor could it increase the “value” of the sport.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has been vocally against Andretti’s F1 bid, expressing his concerns that they would “dilute” the sport.
Even so, the Austrian dismissed the idea that he has a “grudge” against the Andretti group.
“I don’t know him,” Wolff said. “I mean, he’s one of the great names of the sport. And I think Andretti, as a racing team, has been doing well in the United States.
“There’s no grudge. If you haven’t really met someone, you can’t have a personal grudge.”
Guenther Steiner - the team principal of F1’s only American team currently - also insisted it was “nothing personal”.
McLaren’s Zak Brown and Aston Martin’s Mike Krack appeared to be more supportive when speaking to AP.
Brown has worked with Andretti previously, while Krack worked for them in Formula E.
