General Motors' long wait to enter Formula 1 is likely coming, as advanced talks are underway to bring the manufacturer into the sport via the Cadillac brand for 2026.
Unlike its archrival, Ford, General Motors had focused its motorsport activities on sportscar racing and NASCAR and had previously never competed in Grand Prix Racing.
But in the winter of 2023, General Motors, via the Cadillac brand, announced it would team up with Andretti Global, who were seeking entry onto the F1 grid for 2026. The team, then run by former IndyCar legend and McLaren driver Michael Andretti, has won in various disciplines, from touring car racing to Formula E.
Although those inside the F1 paddock welcomed General Motors' arrival, Andretti struggled to garner support from the current 10 teams. Immediately, concerns were raised about whether the team would bring value to the sport and how prize money rewarded at the end of the season would be reduced.
Other issues included a lack of space for two extra cars at some F1 venues and whether a General Motors engine would be ready for its expected debut in 2028.
Despite earning the approval of the FIA, the entry was rejected by Liberty Media, owners of the Formula One Group, in January 2024, Nevertheless, General Motors stood firm, staying with Andretti, who set up a base in Silverstone, in April. The team has continued to hire people with F1 experience such as Pat Symonds and Nick Chester in preparation for the team's scheduled debut in 2026.
In May, the US Department of Justice investigated Liberty Media over Andretti's rejection from F1. The investigation was launched after 12 members of the US Congress expressed their concerns with the 'apparent anti-competitive actions' surrounding Andretti's snubbing.
However, in September, Michael Andretti stepped back from his role as team owner, with Dan Towriss, CEO of Group 1001, an insurance and financial services company based in Zionsville, Indiana, taking over.
Towriss' appointment has changed the project's fortunes, with those team bosses who had previously expressed concerns about an 11th team suddenly warming to the idea.
"We have an obligation, a statutory obligation as directors to present the standpoint that is the best for our company and for our employees, and we've done that so in the past," said Toto Wolff in Thursday evening's FIA team principal press conference for Saturday night's Las Vegas Grand Prix. "I think if a team can add to the championship, particularly if GM decides to come in as a team owner, that is a different story.
"And as long as it is creative, that means we're growing the popularity of the sport, we're growing the revenue of the sport, then no team will be ever against it. So, I'm putting my hope in there. No one from Andretti or Andretti Global or whatever the name will be has ever spoken to me a single sentence in presentation of what the creative part is. But they don't need to because the teams don't decide. It is the commercial rights holder. With the FIA, we have no say."
Towriss will be in the Las Vegas paddock this weekend to try and get the deal over the line. However, sources close to autoevolution make it clear the team will be General Motors and not Andretti if F1 does accept the entry. GM will also have to negotiate a deal with another manufacturer for customer engines until the end of 2027, as the Cadillac engine is unlikely to be ready until 2028.
The Andretti family and F1
Photo: Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
The seeds of Andretti's story with F1 began in the 1950s. As boys, Mario and his brother Aldo attended the Italian GP at Monza, watching titans such as Alberto Ascari and Juan Manuel Fangio fight for victory.
The Andrettis moved to America in 1955 and quickly began cars on dirt tracks before eventually switching to NASCAR and IndyCar.
In 1968, three years after an impressive third in his first Indy 500, Andretti was given a chance of an F1 debut with Colin Chapman's Lotus team at Watkins Glen for the US GP. He then shocked the pitlane by qualifying on pole position before retiring on lap 32 with clutch failure.
Andretti raced on and off in F1 when commitments in America didn't clash. During this time he earned Enzo Ferrari's trust, and on his debut for the iconic Italian marque, he won the 1971 South African GP.
By 1975, Andretti returned to racing in F1, but this time would commit to it full-time. Following a brief stint with Parnelli run by former Indy 500 winner Parnelli Jones, he returned to Lotus for 1976 just as the team who had spent a couple of years in the doldrums returned to the front of the field with its radical ground effect car, the 78.
Andretti's finest hour came in 1978 after a season-long battle with teammate Ronnie Peterson, which saw Lotus secure its first Constructors Championship since 1973. In the sleek 79, he became world champion at Monza, becoming only the second American to achieve this after Phil Hill in 1961.
Sadly, like Hill, Andretti's title was overshadowed by tragedy as Peterson was caught up in a startline shunt and died of his injuries in hospital later that evening.
Over the next three years, Andretti failed to win a race, and in 1982, he returned to IndyCar full-time. That same year, he made sporadic appearances as a super sub for Williams and Ferrari, with the highlight being a famous pole at Monza.
The Andretti name returned to F1 in 1993 when Michael Andretti, the 1991 CART champion, was snapped up by McLaren to partner Ayrton Senna.
However, the switch from CART to F1 was not fruitful; after a sole third place at Monza, Andretti returned to America in 1994 and was replaced by Finland's Mika Hakkinen.
Nevertheless, once his driving career ended, Andretti became a successful team owner and decided to bring the family name back to F1 in 2021.
He tried to buy the Sauber team, bringing young American sensation Colton Herta to drive one of the cars. However, the deal fell through at the eleventh hour, and the Swiss outfit was eventually sold to Audi in 2022.
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