Mario Andretti reveals personal ATTACK from F1 chief was like ‘bullet to the heart’

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Andretti reveals personal ATTACK from F1 chief was like ‘bullet to the heart’

A big clash in Miami led to some very hurt feelings

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Tuesday 28 May 2024 15:57

Former world champion Mario Andretti has revealed that Formula 1's decision to reject his team's bid for a place on the grid felt ‘personal’ and hit like a ‘bullet to the heart’.

American outfit Andretti were aiming to join the F1 field in 2026, but were rejected by Formula One Management.

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The team is fronted by former F1 driver (and son of Mario) Michael Andretti, and currently competes in a plethora of other racing series including IndyCar, Formula E and the IMSA series.

Andretti’s bid was in conjunction with Cadillac, owned by General Motors, who would have powered Andretti’s racing cars from 2028.

Andretti still hope to join the grid eventually

Why did F1 reject Andretti?

Despite their racing pedigree, FOM rejected Andretti's bid as they did not believe they were a "competitive applicant" and would not provide "value" to the series.

Regardless, Andretti are continuing preparations for a 2028 entry by opening a brand new facility at Silverstone and advertising key technical roles.

The team has also poached F1’s Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds, who will join as executive engineering officer.

However, the Andretti family are still unhappy about their rejected F1 bid.

During an exclusive interview with NBC News, the 1978 champion detailed a clash with Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei at a private event in Miami.

Greg Maffei and Mario Andretti clashed at private event

“I was asked to go there. And just as I was trying to explain [our plans] to [F1 CEO] Stefano [Domenicali], Greg Maffei, broke in the conversation and said: 'Mario, I want to tell you that I will do everything in my power to see that Michael [Andretti] never enters Formula 1,” Andretti said.

“I could not believe that. That one really floored me. We’re talking about business. I didn’t know it was something so personal. That was really... oh, my goodness. I could not believe it. It was just like a bullet through my heart.”

Formula 1 Cadillac Silverstone Mario Andretti