Andretti Global's Quest to Formula 1

Photo Credit Andretti Global. 

The saga of entering Formula 1 between the FIA and Andretti Global is frustrating, to say to least. Especially for myself, who is an F1 fan who was born and raised in Indiana.

I will admit, the FIA does bring up good arguments on Andretti Global entering during a time of major regulation changes. However, they attempted to take it to another level. Almost like they were trying to embarrass the American outfit. However, in doing so, they opened themselves up to be heavily criticized in my opinion. Below, I highlight my opinions on where the FIA could be wrong.

Money- The FIA states an 11^th team would not bring value to the sport, but only the Andretti name. Also, stating that an 11^th team would put a burden on sponsors and event venues.

Liberty Media just announced its highest Q1 ever. They said, “that the Formula 1 acquisition of MotoGP and the success of recent races marked by growing attendance and viewership, were notable heights.”

If now is not the time for Andretti to join, when will it be? With the pot being larger than ever, I sense greed.

 If the FIA allowed Vijay Mallya's antics, they should not have an issue with an established racing organization joining, like Andretti.

Power Unit (PU)- The FIA also said that relying on a PU supplier that is not their own, would not be in their best interest. Also stating "PU supplier would see as a risk to its intellectual property and know-how. My issue with that statement is the current ownership between Redbull and the Visa Cash App RB F1 team. 

The current state of Formula 1 has many other teams that rely on another PU supplier. For instance, American team, MoneyGram Haas F1 would be ineligible based off the criteria Andretti is being held to. Haas F1 is powered by Ferrari.

Competitiveness- The FIA states Andretti needs to be fighting for podiums at its inception. Currently, I only see three teams able to be fight for podiums week in, and week out, Redbull, Ferrari, and McLaren.   

In regard to competitiveness, the historical Williams F1 team, which has 9 constructors' championships, and 7 drivers champions has yet to score in the points in 2024. Much of the criticism falls on American driver Logan Sargeant, who is on the verge of losing his seat, due to a lack of performance.

However, Williams Team Principal, James Vowles described their facilities as two decades outdated. Vowels, also noted that the team built this year's car using a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

One instance saw Logan’s teammate Alex Albon crash during Saudi Arabia practice. The team did not have a backup chassis available. That race turned into a 19-car field.  What is even more bizarre, Alex got to drive Logan’s undamaged car in the race.

More examples of the mid and back of the field teams not being competitive are: The Kick Sauber team (soon to be Audi) did not practice getting its wheel nuts off at race temperature. Therefore, ruining the first 2 races for their drivers.

Also, the Alpine F1 team was so overweight and slow out of the gate that after the first race, they lost a technical director and head of aerodynamics. They have since restructured team leaders after one race.

The FIA does bring up valid points about the timing of adding an additional team during major regulation changes. However, they took it too far based on the current state of some of their teams and past decisions they made. 

Andretti is not slowing down on their quest to join F1. They have job postings for their new location in Silverstone, UK. Get your popcorn ready!