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U.S. in F1: GM and Andretti team up to go Formula One racing
Posted by Talbot Payne on January 6, 2023
Formula One is poised to get a dose of red, white and blue.
Two icons of U.S. auto sports, Andretti Global and General Motors Co.’s Cadillac, are teaming up to race in the world’s most prestigious, open-wheel motor-racing series. The bombshell news Thursday comes as Formula One and Cadillac are making major pushes into new markets — and dovetails with Andretti Global CEO Michael Andretti’s ambition to follow in the footsteps of his famous father, Mario Andretti, to conquer F1 with an American team.
The time seems ripe for both GM and Andretti. F1 has surged in interest in the United States in recent years with three Grand Prix on the schedule for 2023: Austin, Miami and Las Vegas. Furthermore, the hybrid-powered series has championed electrified racing with a promise for zero-emission racing by 2026 — an ambition that dovetails with GM’s Zero-Zero-Zero mantra (zero crashes, zero emissions, zero congestion) and with Cadillac taking the lead as GM’s first global, all-electric brand.
The partnership did not announce a date for entry into the sport but said it has begun the formal application process with Formula One’s FIA organizing body. If selected, Andretti Cadillac said it is seeking to compete as soon as practical with at least one American driver. The team would be based in the United States with a support facility in the United Kingdom.
“Today is the first step in what we hope to be the historic entry of General Motors into F1. Never happened in our history — it’s very, very exciting for us to be with Andretti,” GM President Mark Reuss said in a press briefing. “And if given the opportunity, GM and Cadillac will compete with the very best at the very highest levels with passion and integrity that will continue to elevate the sport for the FIA and race fans around the world.”
The Formula One partnership is separate from the Detroit Grand Prix, which will race downtown in June this year. The Grand Prix here is an open-wheel IndyCar series race with Chevrolet as a title sponsor. Formula One last raced in the streets of Detroit in 1988.
U.S. automaker involvement in Formula One in recent decades has been sporadic and fraught. Ford Motor Co. was the last American F1 competitor with its then-Jaguar brand from 2000-04 (under the management of American Bobby Rahal for 2001). And Mario Andretti was the last American to win an F1 championship in 1978. No U.S. driver currently races in the series. The lone U.S.-based team in F1, North Carolina-based Hass, uses Ferrari engines.
“I feel very strongly that we are suited to be a new team for Formula One and can bring value to the series and our partners, and excitement for the fans,” Indianapolis-based Andretti Global CEO Michael Andretti said in a statement. “I’m proud to have GM and Cadillac alongside us as we pursue this goal.”
It’s an investment Cadillac is determined to make as it recasts itself for a global, 21st-century market. The F1 announcement complements other recent brand moonshots including the introduction of a hand-built, $300,000-plus Celestiq sedan and all-electric lineup by 2030.
GM gives Andretti the crucial backing of a major manufacturer in a sport that demands brand prestige — Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Honda all compete — as much as it demands their financial resources. Formula One budgets are notoriously stratospheric, and insiders suggest the Andretti Cadillac partnership will need to make a $1 billion investment to be competitive.
“If you’re going to be a true luxury brand, you need to appeal to a number of different customers,” said Rory Harvey, vice president of Global Cadillac, in an interview. “You need … to demonstrate the ability to be there with the best in the world. And I think this is a great addition in terms of the announcement of the expression of interest in Formula One.”
The series’ explosive growth in the United States also helps Cadillac in its backyard, added Harvey: “We’re now up to three races in the U.S., and F1 is certainly growing in popularity here. The U.S. market is massively important to Cadillac. There’s no doubt that (Andretti Cadillac is) complementary to some of the growing focus fans put on F1.”
The coming 2026 F1 rules are tailor-made for manufacturers eager to show off their electrification chops. Global government emissions rules are forcing manufacturers towards battery-powered drivetrains. Formula One’s ‘26 rules increase the battery component of the F1 drivetrain from 80-20 gas-electric to 50-50 at the same time reducing development costs.
Those sweeteners have unleashed rumors that rival Ford might partner with the Red Bull team in F1 as well. The move also comes as Cadillac’s parent, GM, is deepening its commitment to global motorsport. Cadillac is pursuing victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year with a new, prototype sports car. And the Chevrolet brand’s Corvette Z06 GT3 race car will be available for private teams to race across the globe in 2024.
“Mark Reuss is on a mission for Cadillac,” said Steven Cole Smith, a veteran racing writer with Hagerty. “He wants to bring the Cadillac brand back to what it was. Successfully racing in Formula One would be Cadillac’s crowning glory.”
Still, Formula One is a major step as the world’s most expensive and technologically advanced form of motorsport. Annual budgets can soar to as much as $500 million a year for top teams, though F1’s new rules are intended to cap annual engine development costs at $100 million.
Andretti Global currently participates in six series across the globe including the FIA’s battery-powered Formula E series which is a distant cousin to Formula One. Andretti is best known in the United States as one of the open-wheel IndyCar series powerhouse teams. Since its founding in 2003, the team has won five Indy 500 races and four driver championships. The team fielded three cars in the 2022 season, winning twice with American drivers Colton Herta and Alexander Rossi.
Andretti’s interest in Formula One has been a constant source of chatter in the IndyCar paddock in recent years with Herta’s name consistently in the conversation as a young, dynamic American driver that would increase American fan interest.
Andretti unsuccessfully tried to buy the Alfa Romeo-Saber team in 2021. A year ago, Andretti filed an application with the FIA with Renault as its engine supplier for the 2024 season, but the application stalled.
“Formula One has been very tightly controlled with 10 teams splitting the pie, so it’s been difficult for F1 to see how Andretti adds value,” Hagerty’s Smith said. “Now with Cadillac behind Andretti, I don’t see how Formula One says no.”
Andretti and GM last paired in the 2012 IndyCar season when the team was powered by Chevrolet engines. Andretti IndyCars currently uses Honda engines.
Cadillac’s push into Formula One comes on top of its ambitious plans to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year — the first time the brand has competed in the world’s most prestigious endurance race since 2002. Caddy has been a contender in the American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series since 2017, and its all-new, earth-shaking hybrid-V-8 Cadillac V-LMDh, will take the fight global this year in IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championship.
“Our commitment to this program goes beyond the Cadillac livery,” Reuss said. “GM’s vast engineering resources will bring proven success and valuable contributions to this partnership. This includes all the talent and capabilities of GM racing staff and facilities in Michigan, at the Warren Tech Center and North Carolina.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.