Four men under the gaze of the American government could ultimately lead to the Andretti-Cadillac team being welcomed onto the Formula 1 starting grid.
It is common knowledge that after F1 owner Liberty Media blocked Andretti's FIA-approved bid to become the sport's eleventh team, US anti-competition authorities looked into the matter. .
Four well-known F1 personalities were particularly singled out by the American authorities. They are Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll, Red Bull's Christian Horner and F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
The situation even put negotiations to renew Domenicali's contract at a standstill according to several consistent sources.
All four arrived at the United States Grand Prix in Austin with their own lawyers while officials from American legal authorities were also on hand at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas.
These officials insisted on videoconference interviews in the near future and reportedly made it clear that false statements would have drastic consequences.
There is apparently evidence in the form of a WhatsApp group that proves the illegal deal to exclude Andretti from Formula 1 for financial reasons.
In addition to U.S. investigations, European authorities are also monitoring competition law violations by Liberty Media-led Formula 1. Belgian politician Pascal Arimont said he wanted the European Commission “protects consumers and guarantees fair competition”.
Fellow European parliamentarian Christine Anderson then followed suit by formally calling for an investigation into F1, stating that “Formula One Group's rejection of Andretti's entry despite FIA approval could reveal fundamental conflict of interest” (read here).
She notably declared that the existing teams which collude with F1 to block Andretti “could significantly distort competition in the European motorsport industry”.
Interestingly, Michael Andretti withdrew from his own Andretti Global organization a few weeks ago, perhaps opening another potential route into F1.
The owner of Liberty Media, John Malone, is trying to limit the damage from all the fallout from blocking Andretti's entry by changing his posture.
Insiders are confident a deal will be struck with Andretti, allowing them to enter the sport and at least appease the Justice Department's notoriously intransigent investigators.
He also links the departure of Liberty's chief F1 lawyer Sacha Woodward Hill last month to the Andretti affair, describing it as “a potential scapegoat”.
