28/11/2024
NEWS STORY
Mario Andretti is looking at Ferrari to supply GM with engines when it lines up on the grid in 2026.
Though the American manufacturer will move on to use its own power units, this will be from 2028, meaning that an alternative supply must be sourced for 2026 and 2027.
Mario Andretti, who has been named a director of the new outfit, is looking to the team for whom he made a dozen F1 appearances between 1971 and 1982, as well as being a member of successful endurance racing programme.
"That's what we're talking about," he told NBC News. "That's not definite yet," he admitted, "but that's the objective. And that's the preference.
"My history with Ferrari, and my relationship with Mr. Ferrari all of it plays, plays tremendously," said Andretti who famously returned to the Maranello outfit in the aftermath of Didier Pironi's accident in qualifying for the 1982 German Grand Prix.
"There's so many factors here that make a lot of sense," said the American-Italian. "It will be best of all worlds."
A number of drivers are already being linked with the new American outfit, including Colton Herta, but Andretti was giving little away.
"From our standpoint, I think the play at the beginning would be to have one experienced driver - nationality doesn't matter - and then a young American talent," he said. "These are the objectives at the moment."
Meanwhile, in terms of his son, Michael, whose stepping down from the programme appears to have led to it being given the green light by F1, the racing legend told Motorsport.com: "Ultimately it wasn't just about Michael. It's not that simple.
"There were a lot of things going on, but it happened. It may have made it look like that was the key factor, but it wasn't. One way or another, he might've stepped aside a little bit more about the day-to-day situation with them anyway, so we're not losing a beat anywhere by going forward here.
"I don't know if there's one thing that all of a sudden brought the thing to fruition. There seemed to be some personal things there that personally, I still do not understand. But it seemed like it came down to that."