Andretti’s ambitious journey to the summit of motorsport was first announced in January of this year, along with their fresh collaboration with General Motors’ premium brand, Cadillac. Last December, the American team announced its overly ambitious plans to build state-of-the-art facilities in Fishers, Indiana. With future racing initiatives, this planned to unite all of their motorsports activity under one roof.
The FIA has now formally confirmed that among four teams, Andretti has advanced to Phase 3. As the only team to meet the FIA’s standards, the ultimate fate of Andretti is now in the hands of FOM. However, according to Green Notebooks, their glamorous CV might get labeled as a Red flag.
Why Andretti’s CV might get labeled as a Red Flag?
Formula One has historically been centered in Europe. However, with the arrival of Netflix’s popular show Drive to Survive, it began to push boundaries. The sport enjoyed a surge in popularity in the United States. The decision of the former IndyCar and F1 driver Michael Andretti has to establish a factory in America has helped him get the green flag from FIA. However, if the Andrettis had decided to build a competitive car in the United States, there may be a problem. The Green Notebook author Joe Saward has pointed out that creating a competitive car in America will be the biggest red flag for Andretti.
The reason for this is a lack of technical skills. Though he feels that the technology to produce the F1 cars exists, the best resource is ultimately in Europe. Aside from that, recruiting and maintaining top-tier professionals such as engineers and aerodynamicists is extremely difficult in F1. Since Andretti has his factory in the United States, where F1 is less developed, he may confront these challenges. Though Andretti has some excellent employees at Silverstone, the vehicles are expected to continue to be manufactured in the United States. Perhaps that is merely marketing exaggeration that will eventually work against the organization in the long run.
Following this, the other journalist poses another question emphasizing the need for 100% focus on F1 teams. In order to compete successfully on the F1 circuits, the crew must be adequately prepared and maintain an unwavering focus. While providing a few examples, Saward points out that McLaren and Ferrari, both manufacturers of cars, have flourishing F1 teams while simultaneously competing in other events. However, Andretti, who is not a car manufacturer, must prioritize F1 success. Their prolonged participation in other racing events, such as Indy Car, can divert their attention away from their ultimate aim to thrive in Formula 1.
The Andretti’s have long been involved in Indy car races. Since retiring as an IndyCar driver, Michael Andretti has owned Andretti Autosport, which has won three IndyCar Series championships and the Indianapolis 500. However, Andretti’s team has been underwhelming in recent years.
Joe Saward writes while providing the briefing, ” The core business in IndyCar is not very impressive nowadays. The best Andretti driver finished only 10th in this year’s series. This is hardly excellent. It has not won the championship for more than a decade and has not won the Indy 500 since 2017.” This clearly raises issues and concerns about their ability to produce competitive cars.
The American F1 venture and Andretti’s involvement
Andretti has been quick to understand the components for success in an era when the American market is thriving. Given America’s tradition of recognizing athletes, Andretti has taken a chance on a well-known local name, Colton Herta, after acquiring an American car maker. In order to have a sure shot at the full American team, Andretti Global picked the 23-year-old. With no information for precisely which racking series the promising youngster was chosen, the team made him the man to lead the American team.
Andretti made a statement in January of this year, following Herta’s flirtation with Red Bull but becoming the eventual choice of the Americans. According to PlanetF1.com, Andretti stated, ” With Colton, we do have him under contract right now in IndyCar and so we definitely want to make it an all-American effort to make sure that we have an American driver in the seat.”
Andretti’s partnership with the American manufacturer and an American driver might help them in two ways: increasing fan interest and capitalizing on Herta’s potential, as his talks with Red Bull indicate his ability to handle a competitive F1 car.
