Racey Thoughts: Will We See Andretti-Cadillac on the F1 Grid?

When risk-takers put the brakes on taking risks.

So, we’re going to see an Andretti-Cadillac team in Formula One in 2025. Or, are we?

The FIA approved Andretti’s bid to join F1, but that’s just the first step of the process. It’s also the easiest. Why? Because it has little to do with money. It’s political. And if there’s one thing more powerful than politics, it’s money. At least in motorsport.

The next step for Michael Andretti and team is approval by Formula One Management (FOM) – the commercial rights holder. All of the current ten F1 teams are members of this group, along with promoters and a few other organizations. But it seems that the teams have most of the control within FOM. And that’s where things get sticky. Their decisions come down to money, and practically all of the current teams have been vocal about not wanting an eleventh team to join the grid.

Why?

The way the F1 financial pie is sliced up is mostly dependent on the number of pie-eaters sitting down at the table for dessert. Let’s say that there is $100 to be split up amongst the teams (I’ve read it’s more like $900 million). Ten teams each go away with $10. It’s not quite that simple, but that’s the basic idea.

Add an eleventh team at the table, and now each of those teams will go home with $9.09. That doesn’t seem like a huge difference, but multiply that by hundreds of millions of dollars, and it’s good motivation for teams to not want to share their wealth.

But there’s another factor to consider – or, at least, the teams should consider: With the addition of the Andretti (and Cadillac) names and brands to the sport, would that $100 grow to, let’s say, $110? Or $120? Would the existing ten teams go home with more than $10 worth of pie?

I find the attitude and opinions of many of the F1 team principles to be short-sighted. Or, in business terms, they have an “at-risk” mindset, rather than an “at-stake” one.