02/01/2023
NEWS STORY
A New Year tweet from FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem appears to open the way for Andretti... and others.
The tweet late this afternoon from Ben Sulayem's personal account was short and simple.
"I have asked my FIA team to look at launching an Expressions of Interest process for prospective new teams for the FIA F1 World Championship," it read.
Since Manor dropped out of F1 in 2016 there have been just ten teams, the British outfit, which started life as Virgin then Marussia, having joined just a few years earlier along with Lotus and HRT, all three attracted to the sport by the promise of a budget cap and competitive engine package that was not to be.
Since then, certainly since Liberty Media took control of the sport in 2017, there has been an unofficial franchise system in operation, and in a bid to ensure that the existing teams maintain a value and to prevent 'wannabee' entries from the Andrea Modas of this world, potential new entries would have to pay out $200m on entry as a result of the "dilution" of the prize money pool.
However, even accepting the $200m demand hasn't been enough for Michael Andretti's dream of entering F1, with the FIA, and a number of leading teams, including Mercedes, clearly against the idea.
On the other hand, Audi, which is buying a major slice of Sauber, has been welcomed with open arms, while it is still hoped that Porsche will find the means to line up on the grid.
The big question is why this apparent change of heart from the FIA?
Does F1 see a benefit from having 11 or 12 teams or is the sport merely playing safe aware that the so-called boom might not last forever. Indeed, over the years we have seen the manufacturer treat the sport as though it had a revolving door, the ongoing antics of Honda being a perfect example.
Whatever, Andretti will surely see this as a belated Christmas present.