Andretti joins forces with General Motors for Cadillac Formula 1 entry bid

Andretti teamed up with General Motors in a bid to enter Formula 1 which, if successful, would also see the famous Cadillac name join the grid.

Team owner Michael Andretti lobbied the FIA, Formula 1’s governing body, to expand the grid by 20 cars and pushed ahead with plans despite a failed attempt in 2021 to buy Sauber and opposition from Formula 1 teams who claimed 11 th team would dilute their income.

Now that FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem has opened the door for new teams to join the grid, a collaboration between one of America’s most successful racing teams and the biggest car company has been announced.

Andretti’s main headquarters will be in Indiana, while General Motors will be their engine and manufacturing partner, with GM’s Cadillac brand as part of the entry. The team will be known as Andretti Cadillac Racing.

Sky Sports News understands there will be no chance of a new entry before 2026, while there are other interested parties exploring F1 besides Andretti.

Any application for a new entrant requires the consent of both F1 and the FIA.

“Today’s news from the United States is further evidence of the popularity and growth of the FIA ​​Formula 1 World Championship under the leadership of the FIA,” said Ben Sulaiman after Andretti’s announcement.

“It is especially gratifying to have interest from two iconic brands such as General Motors Cadillac and Andretti Global.

“Any additional entries will be based on positive acceptance of the FIA’s 2026 PU rules among OEMs, which has already attracted participation from Audi.

“Any expression of interest process will follow strict FIA protocol and will take several months.”

What Andretti ‘Brings to the F1 Party’ Now

Andretti said in the announcement, the culmination of four months of talks with General Motors, that the American automaker is providing Andretti’s efforts with the added value that rival teams say the new teams should bring to F1.

“One of the big things was ‘what does Andretti bring to the party?'” Andretti said. “Well, we have one of the largest manufacturers in the world with us now with General Motors and Cadillac.

“We feel like that’s the one box we haven’t checked, but we’ve checked it now. I think we’re going to bring a huge amount of support to Formula 1 and it’s hard for anyone to argue with that.”

F1 immediately responded with the same tone it has used since Andretti began pushing for expansion, noting that there are several parties interested in joining the series and Andretti is simply the most visible. Andretti’s father, Mario Andretti, has been the 1978 Formula One world champion.

“There is currently a lot of interest in the F1 project, with a number of ongoing conversations that are not as visible as others,” F1 said in a statement.

“We all want to ensure that the championship remains reliable and stable and any application for a new entrant will be assessed against criteria for achieving these objectives by the relevant stakeholders.”

Andretti said despite F1’s statement, he still believes Andretti Global is the strongest candidate. He admitted that F1 had not shared the other stakeholders with him.

“We have an opportunity to unite our passions for motorsport [with GM] and dedication to innovation to build a true American bid for F1,” Andretti added.

“Together we will continue to follow the procedures and steps outlined by the FIA ​​during the evaluation process. In the meantime, we continue to prepare optimistically if we are lucky enough to have Andretti Cadillac officially approved as a F1 contender.”