Formula 1: American team Andretti will not enter the paddock because it is considered “not competitive enough”

F1 decided, but it didn’t! American team Andretti Formula Racing’s request to become Formula One’s 11th team by 2025 or 2026 has been rejected, F1 announced in a press release on Wednesday, January 31. Despite an agreement in principle from the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the integration of the newcomer had to be evaluated by Liberty Media, the rights holder of Formula 1.

For F1 decision-makers, the Andretti team would not bring any added value to the current circuit, despite the announced partnership between the team and General Motors. “Our evaluation process determined that the presence of an 11th team in itself would not add value to the championship. The best way for a new team to provide value would be to be competitive. We do not believe that this candidate would be a competitive participant.”states Liberty Media to justify the rejection of the American team’s candidacy.

The organizer of the Formula 1 world championship still left the door open for the long-term arrival of Andretti, considering “differently a bid to enter the 2028 championship with an engine supplied by General Motors. In this case, there would be other factors to consider regarding the value a candidate would bring to the championship, especially with the arrival of a new prestigious manufacturer as an engine manufacturer in the discipline.”