Tag: andretti

Andretti ‘offended’ by F1 rejection comments, set for Miami meeting

Mario Andretti says he was “offended” by comments from Formula 1 about how Andretti Global would not be competitive if it was granted an entry, as well as disrespect over the General Motors partnership. Formula One Management (FOM) stated it was not …

Mario Andretti says he was “offended” by comments from Formula 1 about how Andretti Global would not be competitive if it was granted an entry, as well as disrespect over the General Motors partnership.

Formula One Management (FOM) stated it was not open to giving Andretti a spot on the grid in either 2025 or 2026 at the start of this year, after the FIA had approved the team’s credentials to join the sport. Earlier this month, Andretti opened its Silverstone facility that is building a chassis to current regulations as work continues on the F1 project, and the 1979 world champion says comments that the team wouldn’t be competitive and is underestimating the challenge of racing in F1 were unfair.

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“I was offended, actually,” Andretti told AP at the IndyCar race in Long Beach this weekend. “I don’t think we deserved that, to be honest with you.

“It’s a big investment in the series, and you’d think they’d welcome that. Even the value of the series is more valuable with 11 teams than 10, so I don’t know. Tell us what is really wrong.”

With F1 stating it would look more favorably on the entry in 2028 if GM commits to its power unit project, following its registration as a supplier with the FIA, there have also been comments relating to the appeal of GM partnering with existing teams that have also annoyed Andretti.

“That’s another offensive statement there. We’re the ones that worked it out, and GM said it over and over, ‘Andretti or nothing,’ and then (F1) still tried to take it. There’s an undercurrent there that I don’t understand, quite honestly, but if they want blood, well, I’m ready.”

However, Andretti says he’s likely to get answers to those frustrations when the prospective team meets with F1 at the next round in Miami.

“We only had one meeting with them. That’s a problem. We haven’t had enough. I think that’s why I really welcome our next meeting. You know, let’s sit down. There were some opportunities missed along the way, but we’ve got to look forward, not back.

“I’m remaining hopeful because we never stop working towards this. It was made clear that our work is at pace, and as you can see we’re not just talking. We’re putting brick and mortar together. We’ve shown that with the team that already has a place in Silverstone.

“We’re trying to say ‘We’ll do whatever you ask of us. We’ll do whatever is there. Now, if you think of something, you tell us,’. But they haven’t told us yet except for some excuses like, ‘Oh we don’t want you coming on, we don’t want you to be embarrassed.’

“But we don’t want to embarrass ourselves, and the fact is General Motors has made it so clear that they’re excited about this project. They have a long-term commitment there, and I don’t know what else we can do.”

Drivers, fans slam Formula 1 for rejecting Andretti

There won’t be an Andretti team on the Formula 1 grid until at least 2028 after a controversial decision was handed down on Wednesday.

The Formula 1 grid will remain at 10 teams and 20 total cars until at least 2028, after F1 rejected a joint bid from Michael Andretti and Cadillac to enter the championship in 2025.

The FIA had approved the application from Michael Andretti in 2023, but the final decision from Formula 1 management was delivered on Wednesday. F1’s reasoning for the rejection shocked many world class drivers and fans, who vented on Twitter over F1’s statements.

According to F1, the addition of a new team would not provide value to the sport, and the Andretti team would not be competitive on the grid.

“Our assessment process has established that the presence of an 11th team would not, on its own, provide value to the championship. The most significant way in which a new entrant would bring value is by being competitive. We do not believe that the Applicant would be a competitive participant.”

Perhaps the most confounding reason listed by F1 for rejecting Andretti is an argument that the name “Andretti” isn’t famous enough in world motorsports.

“While the Andretti name carries some recognition for F1 fans, our research indicates that F1 would bring value to the Andretti brand rather than the other way around.”

While the second half of that statement is obviously true for all teams involved – Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari all enjoy the attention the worldwide stage of F1 provides, the first point is mystifying, especially considering the teams currently existing in Formula 1.

Mario Andretti is a former Formula 1 world champion! Andretti Autosport won a Formula E championship in 2023, and has Multiple IndyCar titles and Indy 500 trophies back at the shop. Gene Haas, by comparison, would have entirely unknown to European and Asian racing fans when his F1 team debuted in 2016.

F1 noted that Andretti could enter in 2028, should General Motors develop it’s own power unit.

“We would look differently on an application for the entry of a team into the 2028 Championship with a GM power unit, either as a GM works team or as a GM customer team designing all allowable components in-house.”

Here’s what drivers and fans were saying about the decision:

Andretti settles on three entries for 2024

Andretti Global will move forward with three full-time NTT IndyCar Series entries. “There will be just the three,” Andretti COO Rob Edwards told RACER. The decision signals an end to its recent practice of fielding a fourth car for hire by a driver …

Andretti Global will move forward with three full-time NTT IndyCar Series entries.

“There will be just the three,” Andretti COO Rob Edwards told RACER.

The decision signals an end to its recent practice of fielding a fourth car for hire by a driver bringing funding to race alongside the team’s paid professionals; prior to accepting paying drivers, Andretti used all four of its cars to compete for wins and podiums.

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The expansion to four cars delivered immediate success with championships for Tony Kanaan in 2004, Dan Wheldon in 2005, and Dario Franchitti in 2007, and the change to running three comes after entering four full-time cars in 16 of the last 18 seasons.

In recent years, the Andretti team’s sustained competitiveness with four has wavered; it’s more than a decade removed from its last championship victory, earned by Ryan Hunter-Reay in the first year of IndyCar’s new chassis and engine formula in 2012.

Andretti had run four full-time entries for much of the last two decades – Dan Wheldon, Tony Kanaan, Bryan Herta and Dario Franchitti pictured at Michigan in 2004. Phillip Abbott/Motorsport Images

Since the debut of the Dallara DW12 and the 2.2-liter turbocharged V6 motors, Andretti has come close to adding another title on numerous occasions, with former driver Alexander Rossi taking second in 2018 and third in 2019, and from its current roster, Colton Herta reached third in the Drivers’ standings in 2020. But since then, the organization has taken a large step backwards with its top performers finishing ninth in 2022 and 10th in 2023.

Heading into 2024, Andretti veterans Herta and Kyle Kirkwood will be joined by former Chip Ganassi Racing driver Marcus Ericsson as its core trio, and Edwards says the Honda-powered team is seeking the same reward experienced by Team Penske which cut its fourth car after the 2021 season and reaped the benefits of being smaller and more efficient by capturing the 2022 IndyCar title with Will Power.

“We’re definitely trying to focus our efforts and with a view to more race wins and championships and Indy 500s,” he said. “We look at what Penske did when they went from four to three, and in their case, they had four strong drivers, not ride buyers, but they still felt operationally that it was an advantage for them to do three and we see some similar advantages. And so we’re going to tread down that path and focus on Colton, Kyle, and Marcus.”

Amid the changes, Andretti will maintain continuity with the engineers attached to its three cars.

“Nathan O’Rourke will continue to work with Colton and Jeremy Milless will continue to work with Kyle, which obviously was successful last year,” Edwards said of the two wins Kirkwood delivered. “And then Olivier Boisson is going to be with Marcus and they’ve already had two or three days working together it’s working very well.”

Andretti will also enter the Indy 500 with a smaller effort of four cars in place of its familiar five.

“The plan is certainly to be four at the 500,” Edwards added. “There’s no anticipated plan to run more than that. Obviously, the 500 is super important and so that same drive to focus on the three cars for season would lead us to only add the one car for the 500.”

Since retiring from IndyCar at the end of 2020, Marco Andretti has returned to pilot an extra entry at the last three Indy 500s with a best performance of 17th in May.

Andretti approved as new F1 entry by FIA, needs approval from FOM

The first step for Andretti’s entry into F1 is complete, but the last step will be the hardest part.

Michael Andretti has been looking to field a team on the Formula 1 grid for some time now, and his aspirations took a big step forward on Monday.

Andretti’s hypothetical 11th team was approved by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) on Monday, bringing him one step closer to entering F1. Andretti was one of four teams that had advanced through to Phase 2 of the FIA’s evaluation, but it was the only one to be officially approved.

That doesn’t mean Andretti is confirmed, however. The final step in seeking approval is negotiating with Formula One Management, or FOM, to discuss the commercial terms of Andretti’s potential return. This is likely to be the most difficult part of the process, as F1 teams and FOM have previously discussed their desire to keep the F1 grid at 10 teams.

The hang-up from F1 teams and FOM comes from revenue sharing. With an 11th team on the grid, funds dispersed through marketing and pots won through the World Constructor’s Championship would be split thinner, and teams are reluctant to allow this with a potential new entry. The entry fee for an incoming team was initially set at $200 million — a fee that Michael Andretti claimed he was willing to pay — but F1 teams have attempted to vastly increase that number by claiming it isn’t enough.

Here is what Formula 1 officially said after the FIA’s approval, per Chris Medland of Racer:

“We note the FIA’s conclusions in relation to the first and second phases of their process and will now conduct our own assessment of the merits of the remaining application.”

Time will now only tell if Andretti’s team, which is partnering with Cadillac of General Motors, will be approved to join F1 or will be rejected in favor of the current 10 F1 teams.

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FIA approves ‘Andretti Formula Racing’ F1 application

The FIA has formally announced it has approved Andretti’s application to join the Formula 1 grid, meaning the project is now able to proceed to negotiations with Formula One Management (FOM). Expressions of interest from new teams were invited in …

The FIA has formally announced it has approved Andretti’s application to join the Formula 1 grid, meaning the project is now able to proceed to negotiations with Formula One Management (FOM).

Expressions of interest from new teams were invited in February of this year, prompting numerous prospective teams to submit initial documentation. The FIA says four applications were then approved to advance to Phase 2 of the process, with a full application, evaluation and approval process now resulting in only Andretti – under the full name of Andretti Formula Racing LLC – being accepted as meeting the governing body’s criteria.

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As the only team approved to move forward to Phase 3, Andretti will now be referred to FOM to discuss commercial terms, although so far there has not been a public expression of any desire from the commercial rights holder to increase the number of teams.

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem says the evaluation of each applicant was extremely detailed and in line with legal requirements, as well as satisfying the governing body’s remit to increase interest in motorsport.

“The FIA was very clear in establishing stringent criteria for entry from the outset of the Expressions of Interest procedure,” Ben Sulayem said. “Our objective, after rigorous due diligence during the application phase, was to only approve prospective entries which satisfied the set criteria and illustrated that they would add value to the sport.

“The FIA is obliged to approve applications that comply with the Expressions of Interests application requirements and we have adhered to that procedure in deciding that Andretti Formula Racing LLC’s application would proceed to the next stage of the application process. In taking that decision, the FIA is acting in accordance with EU directives on motor sport participation and development.

“Andretti Formula Racing LLC was the only entity which fulfills the selection criteria that was set in all material respects. I congratulate Michael Andretti and his team on a thorough submission. I also want to thank all prospective teams for their interest and participation.

“The Expressions of Interest process builds on the positive acceptance of the FIA’s 2026 F1 Power Unit Regulations among existing OEMs which has also attracted further commitment from Audi, Honda and Ford and interest from Porsche and General Motors.

“I would like to thank all of the FIA team members involved in the Expressions of Interest process for their tireless efforts in ensuring a diligent assessment of all of the applications received.”

A statement from Formula 1 following the FIA’s announcement simply acknowledged the decision.

“We note the FIA’s conclusions in relation to the first and second phases of their process and will now conduct our own assessment of the merits of the remaining application.”

Notre Dame Football – Camping World Bowl Schedule

Not going to lie:  Obviously excited for one more game for the 2019 season to get here but now I really want to go drive a go-kart before Christmas.  

Notre Dame’s 10-2 football team leaves South Bend today to spend Christmas in Orlando as they prepare for the 7-5 Iowa State Cyclones in the Camping World Bowl.  When will you hear from Brian Kelly and some of the players before the game?

Today is the travel day from South Bend while plenty is planned both in preparation and in fun off the field this week.  Here’s how that will look for the Fighting Irish (all times ET):

Monday, Dec. 23 – Travel Day

Tuesday, Dec. 24 – First On-Site Practice (Boone High School)

  • 11:30 a.m. – Brian Kelly and a selected player will meet the media before practice gets underway at noon. The first three periods of practice will be open to the media at Boone High School in Orlando.

Wednesday, Dec. 25 – Second On-Site Practice (Boone High School)

  • 11:30 a.m. – Brian Kelly and selected student-athlete will address the media before noon practice again just as Jesus would want it on his birthday.

Thursday, Dec. 26 – Day For Kids & Third On-Site Practice (Camping World Stadium)

  • Day for Kids Event (9-11 a.m.) at Andretti Indoor Karting & Games

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL1h9aiHVR8&w=560&h=315]

  • 1:30 p.m. – Coach Kelly available upon arrival before practice begins at 2 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 27 – Head Coaches Press Conference (Rosen Plaza Hotel)/Pep Rally (Pointe Orlando)

  • Coach Kelly & Iowa State Head Coach Matt Campbell will hold a joint press conference (9 a.m.) at the Rosen Plaza Hotel

  • Notre Dame pep rally at 4:45 p.m. at Pointe Orlando

Not going to lie:  I’m obviously excited for one more game for the 2019 season to get here but now I really want to go drive a go-kart before Christmas.

Also worth noting – with Christmas coming up we’ll all be busy but keep it here as we’ll have reaction from each day ahead of game day as Notre Dame seeks just their eighth 11-win season in school history.