11/05/2023
NEWS STORY
Michael Andretti says he expects to receive news of whether his entry to the Formula One World Championship has been accepted in "mid-July".
Ever since announcing his desire to enter the sport the American has faced stiff opposition from its main stakeholder and a majority of the teams. The subsequent announcement that he had partnered with General Motors, using its Cadillac brand, did little to soften the resistance.
While most of the objections have centred on money, the teams fearing that additional 'mouths to feed' will mean less prize money all round, leading to suggestions of a $600m 'dilution payment', concerns have also been raised about the value new teams would bring, their financial stability and even the logistics of the current circuits hosting them.
The stance of Formula One Management, essentially Liberty Media, appears particularly odd, the sport appearing to give the shoulder to household American names at a time it is overseeing the total Americanisation of the sport. To many it simply doesn't make sense.
Amidst the objections, McLaren and Alpine were alone in giving their support to Andretti, the saga taking a further twist when, seemingly as part of his power play with Liberty, FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem opened up the process whereby two new teams could apply to enter the sport.
Speaking at the weekend, Michael Andretti said he is awaiting the official decision.
That's our goal, we're working on it," he told reporters. "We have a process that we're in the middle of with the FIA and we're submitting our paperwork this week, and hopefully get an answer middle of July.
"We're making good progress," he added. "We're building a team as we speak."