Michael Andretti has been told to stump up the cash to buy an existing Formula 1 constructor rather than bid for a new entry if he wants to become a team principal.
Former F1 driver and current IndyCar team owner Andretti has lodged a bid with the FIA to become the sport’s 11th team in 2026 under his Andretti Global banner.
The proposal is in conjunction with General Motors brand Cadillac, though the American manufacturer isn’t expected to build power units as part of the deal.
Andretti Global is one of at least four bids for two vacant slots on the grid. The others are the well-known British team Hitech, a Saudi-backed squad headed by former BAR team principal Craig Pollock, and a South-East Asia concern named Lky Sunz.
The FIA is tasked with assessing their suitability to compete in the sport, after which any approved teams will have to negotiate commercial terms with the Formula 1 Management (FOM).
Despite not getting a formal say in the matter, most of the 10 existing teams have been hostile to the reception of a possible grid expansion.
Their root of their issue is the dilution of prize money for having to split the pot 11 or 12 ways, which would affect their profitability if the sport’s rampant growth slowed or stopped.
Toto Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes team, said prospective bidders should be encouraged to buy existing teams instead to guarantee the sport’s value.
“Our position was very clear: buy a team,” the Austrian said.
“There is no mature sports league in the world … where such situation is possible — where you say, ‘I’m setting up a team and I’m joining, thank you very much for making me part of the prize fund’.
“You have to give to qualify. You have to go through the ranks. You have to showcase the commitment to the championship that we’ve done over the many years.
“From a team owner side, there are no leagues which just increased the entries, because that just dilutes the whole league.”
Wolff said he would be willing to entertain a new team if it could prove its commercial worth but didn’t think any of the prospective bidders had done so.
“If a team can contribute to the positive development of Formula 1 — and in a way that the other teams have done over the many years, having suffered over the many years — yeah, we have to look at it.
“So far what we’ve seen hasn’t convinced the teams — but we haven’t seen the applications and submissions that were made to the FIA and to Stefano, and they will judge whether that is positive for Formula 1 or not.”
Responding to Wolff’s advice, Andretti said there were no teams on the market for purchase.
“We’ve tried,” he said, per Racer. “Nobody’s interested, nobody’s selling.
“We’ve been to every single team. They keep saying, ‘Well, buy a team’ (but) nobody wants to sell.
“You go there and they’re not even interested in talking. So yeah, I’ve been there, done that — not happening.”
Andretti had come close to buying the Alfa Romeo-branded Sauber team in late 2021 before the deal collapsed over what the American said were issues of company control.
Sauber subsequently sold a majority stake to Audi to become the German marque’s works team by 2026 in a deal rumoured to place the company’s value at close to $900 million.
Alpine also recently sold nearly a quarter of its F1 team to a consortium of buyers that valued the total operation at approximately $1.36 billion.
Andretti said it was understandable that existing teams would play hardball over new entrants to maintain their sky-high valuations.
“They’re trying to protect their own interests, which you can’t blame them (for),” he said. “If I was in their situation, I’d probably do the same thing.
“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 it’s the right individual.”
Wolff acknowledged that he and his fellow teams have no say in the process but said he believed the sport should take a restrictive franchise-style approach to adding entrants rather than the open-category system that’s been employed more typically in European motorsport.
“I still have the belief that this is a league of franchises,” he said. “When someone comes in, then it should be like in the NFL, where you say, ‘What is it that the new team brings to the party?’.
“That is for the FIA and FOM to decide. We can comment from the sidelines here, and obviously our standpoint is clear.
“We have no visibility of who the applications came from and what the proposals are.
“All the stakeholders, and I think mainly the FIA and FOM, will decide on such a new entry, will assess if the proposal is accretive for Formula 1 — what does it bring us in terms of marketing and interest? — and whether they want to think about introducing that.
“At that stage we have to embrace the decision that’s been taken and say, okay, let’s work on this together.”
Teams were offered the chance to buy into the sport as stakeholder franchises when Liberty Media took over the business in 2017.
Shares were offered at US$21.26 each. All 10 teams turned down the opportunity.
The F1 share price has risen steadily since then and is currently trading just under US$70 a share.
Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said earlier this year that he thought “10 teams are more than enough to create a show for the business” and that his personal opinion was that expansion wasn’t necessary.
Andretti said he was optimistic about his bid and expected a decision from the FIA at the end of the month.
“I feel good. I mean, I we checked every box,” he said. “We just have to wait and see what happens. I think we have everything we need to go in and be competitive and be respectful and add to the series. That’s what we feel.”
