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Michael Andretti Still Eyeing Formula 1 Entry

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Michael Andretti, owner of Andretti Autosport, says he still harbors hopes of owning a Formula One team. His father, Mario Andretti, was crowned F1 World Champion in 1978 and helped establish his family name as one of the biggest in motorsports. Michael himself is also an accomplished driver, having won the 1991 CART PPG Indy Car World Series.

Andretti Autosport is already involved in numerous racing series, including IndyCar—which McLaren Honda’s Fernando Alonso joined earlier this year to great success—as well as Formula E, V8 Supercars, and Red Bull Global Rallycross.

Joining and competing in Formula One, however, is a notoriously more expensive affair compared to all other motorsports—though there are hints that could change. Andretti says he has been keeping a close eye on the changing landscape of F1 following the recent change of ownership. Liberty Media has suggested a budget cap could be in order and the FIA announced two weeks ago that the upcoming 2021 power unit regulations would do away with the MGU-K, one of the most expensive component on modern F1 cars.

“Obviously it comes down to having a backer, as I can’t afford to do it myself,” Andretti said. “There’s been a few deals that started to go somewhere and then they didn’t. We’re always keeping our eyes open.”

The newest addition to the Formula One paddock was another American team, based in North Carolina. Haas F1, established by NASCAR team co-owner Gene Haas, joined the sport in 2015 and completed a reasonably good debut season.

However, the team has been going backward in 2016, and though Haas had made it clear early on that he believed becoming competitive in F1 would be a long-term project, he recently expressed his frustration at the large performance gap to the top and much better-funded teams. This is likely the kind of situation Andretti is hoping to avoid.

News Source: DW Motorsport via Autoweek