Racing legend Mario Andretti has revealed that Andretti Global’s new headquarters will be “bigger than Ferrari’s”, as the American company continues to push for a Formula 1 entry.
Andretti’s son, Michael Andretti, is working hard to get the Andretti name back onto the F1 grid, with the possibility of them becoming an 11th team looking increasingly likely.
The American giants have tried multiple routes to get involved in the pinnacle of motorsport, with the side having had a deal with Sauber collapse, with the Hinwil-based outfit’s partnership with Alfa Romeo set to end at the end of 2023.
They’ve also looked into buying Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri; however, that is a route that Red Bull has no intention of allowing.
READ: ‘Bloated’ FIA blasted by driver for ‘meddlesome’ involvement
Andretti currently has a team in the vast majority of championships across the globe, with the intention being to expand to Formula 1.
The idea behind their new headquarters in Indiana is to have all their projects “under one roof”, something Andretti Snr hails as “our big goal”.
“This isn’t about IndyCar. With this, we want to do something that’s never been done before,” he told the Indianapolis Star.
“We want to be in all forms of auto racing, from Le Mans to Monaco to the Indy 500 and the Daytona 500. And eventually in the future, we want it all to be under one roof. That’s our big goal and we’ve got a lot of plans in the works to get there.”
Going back to their attempt to buy AlphaTauri, Andretti added that the Austrians were “not interested” in selling the Faenza-based side, a message they’ve also given Honda, who are wanting a team in 2026.
Whilst they’ve faced several setbacks, it does appear that their pursuit of joining the grid with their own team is edging ever closer, with Andretti himself admitting “we’re getting really close”.
“No, they’re not interested,” Andretti Snr added.
“But we’re working every day [to get clearance from the FIA to form their own team]. I’m still confident. We’re getting close. We haven’t got the ‘okay’ yet, but we’re getting really close.”
READ: Adrian Newey admits Red Bull ‘put too much’ into Lewis Hamilton fight
Both Andretti and Honda have shown interest in purchasing AlphaTauri, with the future of Red Bull’s sister team having been thrown into the air following a meeting between Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko and new CEO Oliver Mintzlaff.
“Everyone agrees that it wouldn’t make sense to rebuild a successful package like Red Bull Racing. Where there is a need is AlphaTauri,” Marko said.
“This was not satisfactory in the past year.”