Andretti Autosport boss Michael Andretti has responded to suggestions that his team should buy out an existing outfit in Formula 1 if they want to join the world championship.
The paperwork to lodge interest in entering F1 in 2026 has already been submitted to the FIA by Andretti and other applicants. The governing body and F1 are considering whether to accept any of the submissions.
Many of the current 10 teams have opposed calls to expand the grid by adding an 11th or further entries. Last week Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said anyone wishing to join F1 should “buy a team”.
However Andretti made it clear that is not an option at the moment. “We’ve tried. Nobody’s interested,” he told media at the Sardinia X-Prix, an event of the off-road Extreme E series his team competes in.
“We’ve been to every single team. They keep saying ‘well, buy a team’, and nobody wants to sell! You go there, and they’re not even interested in talking. I’ve been there, done that, and not happy.”
Andretti said he is “not really paying attention” to F1 teams being publicly dismissive of his efforts to join, and hopes to “continue to march forward and tick all the boxes that we need to do” to be F1-ready.
“Everybody has their own reasons why they’re doing things, they’re trying to protect their own interests, which, [I] can’t blame them.”
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“But everybody’s been looking out for themselves,” he added. “And that was the biggest thing, when I said that I got criticised because I didn’t agree with it. If I was in their situation, I’d probably do the same thing. So I don’t blame the teams. They all are going to look at [this situation] for themselves, because that’s what they need to do to be competitive.
“It’s a very, very expensive sport. There’s a lot involved, and there’s a lot of commitment from every team. So they got to make sure they protect that, and I understand that’s what they’re trying to do. But in the end, they’re not going to be the ones that make the decision. It’s going to be up to the series and the FIA to decide if they think it’s the right thing to do.”
Andretti expects a decision on whether any new teams are to be admitted will come “probably closer to the end of the month.”
He said he “feels good” about his chances of joining the grid. “I think we checked every box. I feel good, but feeling good and the reality are always two different things. I think we have everything we need to go in and be competitive and be respectful and add to the series.”
He refuted claims Cadillac’s involvement in his entry bid is merely a branding exercise, emphasising that Andretti would be “bringing one of the biggest car manufacturers in the world” to F1.
“General Motors is very, very involved with this. People are trying to say ‘well, they’re just putting their name on it’. No, it’s a very, very [integral] part of the whole team, and part of the team. I think once everything goes public on what we submitted, you’ll see that it’s a big [involvement].”
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He said the team’s IndyCar star Colton Herta, the youngest ever race-winner in the category, is under consideration for a drive.
“Colton is very much in your plans,” said Andretti. “If we do get into F1, he’s been our guy that we wanted to focus on to get him there. And he still has a lot of fire to want to do that. So I would just love that, him involved with it.
“He did test the McLaren and did very, very well in the test. Which was very important because you wonder how he’ll adapt and you’ve got to do very well too. I would love to have him be the first competitive American [in F1] in a long time.”
