Mario Andretti, a American racing driver, accused Greg Maffei, CEO of Liberty Media, of personally expressing his intention to block Michael Andretti’s potential Formula 1 team from entering the sport. Andretti’s proposal was accepted by the FIA last October, but Formula One Management (FOM) did not give approval for the team to join in 2025/6. FOM argued that Andretti’s team would not bring enough value to the championship and questioned its ability to be competitive from the start. However, FOM stated that they would consider Andretti’s application for 2028 if they could secure General Motors as a power unit manufacturer. This situation led members of the United States Congress and the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee to write letters to Maffei seeking clarification.
Andretti stated that during a conversation with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali in Miami, Maffei interrupted and made it clear that he would do everything in his power to prevent Michael Andretti from entering Formula 1. Andretti expressed his disbelief and shock at Maffei’s personal stance on the matter. He believed they were discussing business and did not expect such strong opposition. Maffei’s statement was like a devastating blow to Andretti.
D’autre part, des sources ont informé à RACER que Maffei nie la version des événements d’Andretti. Selon Maffei, c’est Andretti qui l’a abordé pour discuter du sujet, et non l’inverse. Malgré ce désaccord, Andretti reste déterminé à poursuivre ses plans d’entrer en Formule 1. L’équipe a établi une nouvelle base à Silverstone et prévoit d’étendre ses opérations. Avec l’ajout de Nick Chester, ancien ingénieur de Renault, en tant que Directeur Technique, Andretti prévoit de tester un modèle de châssis de F1 à taille réelle d’ici la mi-2024. De plus, l’équipe a annoncé que Pat Simonds, ancien Directeur Technique en Chef de la F1, se joindra en tant que consultant technique une fois son congé sabbatique terminé.
