Formula 1 journalist Will Buxton is convinced that Michael Andretti’s plans to enter a team are valid, and he sees it as no surprise that the top dogs in the sport are “worried.”
Andretti, a semi-retired racing driver and son of 1978 F1 champion Mario, was confirmed by his father on 18 February to have applied to enter a team into the pinnacle of motorsport for 2024.
“Michael has applied to the FIA to field a new F1 team starting in 2024. His entry, Andretti Global, has the resources and checks every box. He is awaiting the FIA’s determination,” he tweeted.
However, it later transpired that the FIA are not considering any new entries at this moment in time, and Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff explained that the American would need to prove that a new team of any sort can add something to the sport.
“And the American market is important. But every team that is joining needs to be accretive, that means needs to add value,” he said.
“And it’s not only it’s not only by paying $200 million entry fee, but it needs to demonstrate in my opinion what it can do for the other teams, for F1 and FIA. Only then the sport will grow.”
At least on the financial front, Andretti would appear to be good for the entry fee and, as the new IndyCar season got underway in St. Petersburg Florida on Sunday, Buxton revealed that the noises coming from the IndyCar paddock suggest the 54-year-old could well challenge the front-runners in F1.
“Speaking to a lot of folks in the IndyCar paddock this weekend. The Andretti F1 project is serious. Very serious. They could pay the entry fee as chump change. And in a non budget capped era have funding to make the top 3 wince. No wonder the establishment are worried,” he tweeted.
The two-time IndyCar podium finisher is reported to have attempted to buy the Haas team from Gene Haas on multiple occasions in the last two years, but has been unable to pry the Banbury-based outfit away from his compatriot.