After the sidelining of Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei, Mario Andretti thinks that the sky is clearing for the entry into Formula 1 of the eponymous team led by Dan Towriss, the associate of his son Michael.
The 1978 World Champion Mario Andretti (84) is the patriarch of the dynasty and has supported Andretti Global's ambition to enter the Grand Prix world from the start.
After unsuccessfully trying to follow in his father's footsteps in F1 during the 1993 season at McLaren, Michael Andretti won a title and numerous victories in IndyCar before creating his own team in the early 2000s.
A family story
The Andretti Autosport team covered itself with glory in Indianapolis, but Formula 1 always remained very present in the family subconscious and came back to the fore when the announcement of the Andretti Global team's candidacy was approved by the FIA in early 2023.
Unfortunately, the FOM opposed it and Liberty boss Greg Maffei was one of the fiercest opponents of the project for unexplained reasons. The Andretti family had emigrated to the USA in the 1950s, Mario and his twin brother Aldo taking up competition in memory of their getaway to Monza to admire Alberto Ascari, the last Italian world champion in history… before the title of the Italian-American Mario Andretti in 1978.
The attraction of F1
The sudden popularity of Formula 1 in the United States, boosted by the Netflix series, has made it possible to sustain three Grands Prix on American soil in Austin, Miami and Las Vegas in front of a large and ever more enthusiastic crowd while the sponsorship business is enjoying success. exponential.
“It’s something extraordinary, states Mario Andretti. In all my years in the United States, I have never seen such strong interest in F1, not even in the 1960s when it was already followed by Americans. There were decades when interest was almost non-existent, and then suddenly, after the boom of Netflix series, an unthinkable love for the sport on the part of Americans came to light.”
Standoff with Liberty Media
Nothing could please Grandpa Mario more than an Andretti team on the starting grid, a project led by his son Michael. The conflict of interest with other teams maintained by the F1 promoter forced Andretti Jr to take a step aside to hand over the reins of the company to his partner Dan Towriss (on the left in the photo above) in order to to save what could be saved.
But Maffei's resignation opens a window of opportunity to revive the Andretti candidacy: “There will be new developments and changes coming to the application, assure Mario.
Is fully support my son in all the decisions he has had to make during this difficult time and the choices he will make in the future to manage the situation as best he can.”
