F1 | Ben Sulayem’s advice to Andretti: “Buy a team”

At the beginning of the season, Andretti was refused entry into Formula 1 in 2025 or 2026 on the basis of considerations formulated by Liberty Media, which does not consider the American team an added value for the grid, at least not until the Power debuts GM unit in 2028.

Andretti immediately said she was disappointed by the reasons that pushed Formula 1 to reject the request made by the American team, both from an image and technical point of view, continuing its hiring plan to strengthen the workforce. In recent weeks, for example, the arrival of Pat Symonds was made official, who abandoned his previous role, in which he contributed to the drafting of the 2022 and 2026 regulations, to join the Andretti project.

The US team thought it had what it took to find a place on the grid as early as 2026, also because it had previously overcome the first hurdle, receiving approval from the FIA. The Federation, through its President Mohamed Ben Sulayem, has supported the expansion of the field beyond the ten existing teams, opening the selection process in February last year to give interested parties the opportunity to present their requests.

After a selection process, in which financial, technical and sustainability aspects were evaluated, only Andretti had received approval from the Federation, moving on to the negotiation phase with the FOM, which however rejected his request in the following months.

This difference in perspectives on the expansion of the grid, given that F1 has always approached the team with great caution due to the possible economic repercussions of existing teams, has put Ben Sulayem at odds with Liberty Media.

Speaking to Reuters in Monaco, given the difficulties in receiving the green light from the FOM, the FIA ​​President changed his position, suggesting that Andretti should try to acquire an existing team rather than persist in its attempt to enter as an eleventh team.

“I have no doubt that FOM and Liberty would be happy to see other teams, as long as they are big houses,” said Ben Sulayem, underlining that probably the only way to change Formula 1’s mind would be to have the full support of a big house. Precisely for this reason FOM left the door open to Andretti in 2028, when the American-built GM Power Unit should debut.

Partnership between Andretti and Cadillac

Photo credit: Andretti Autosport

“I would advise Andretti to buy another existing team, not try to fit in as an 11th team. I think some teams need a refresh. Which is better? Having 11 teams as the number or 10 that are strong? I still believe we should having more teams, but not just any teams. The right teams are a question of number, but of quality.”

Ben Sulayem said that in principle he would still welcome Andretti and its partner General Motors, given the plan put forward by the two US companies, suggesting that this collaboration would bring more to the sport than some of the current teams on the grid.

“Without naming names, there are teams that are struggling. They are in difficulty in terms of performance, but also in difficulty with the management of the team itself. It’s about having the right team, so as not to miss an opportunity or an opportunity in where someone of the caliber of GM, with a Power Unit, arrives in Formula 1.”

“Imagine the impact. We have three races in America. We have a huge fan base. But we don’t have a real US team. I’m very happy to have Ford [con Red Bull]but imagine having GM and having American drivers”, added the President of the FIA. Among Andretti’s plans linked to entry into Formula 1 there would also be the debut in the preparatory categories Formula 2 and Formula 3, in order to give the opportunity for American pilots to move to Europe and find a point of reference with which to continue their career.

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Also included in this discussion is the recent proposal by Liberty Media regarding the increase in the entry fee for new teams, which could go from the current 200 million to a base of 600 million dollars. This dilution fund would compensate for the lost revenues that existing teams would suffer in the event of the entry of an eleventh team, given that the proceeds would be redistributed into eleven parts and no longer into ten.

Given such a high figure, this could push Andretti to reconsider not only the idea of ​​taking part in the world championship, but also of starting from scratch with a completely new project. It is no mystery that the American team evaluated the possibility of buying other teams but, given the high costs, preferred to focus on an independent project. However, with such high figures the situation changes: the money spent to buy entry into the series could be invested in the acquisition of an existing team.

Beyond the objective difficulties in overcoming the negotiation phase with the FOM, this change of position by Andretti could also be perceived as an attempt to calm the waters with F1, thanks to the episodes of recent months which have cooled the relationship between the parties: “Peace is always a good thing, you cannot always have useless problems”, recognized Ben Sulayem.

“We both understand that we need to move forward and the only way to do that is to have much more clarity between us. We are with the FOM when it comes to business. We are partners and we must also forget about the little things and find a solution to address these problems.”