Ben Sulaiman Surprised By 'shocking Response' To Andretti-Cadillac F1 Bid

FIA president Mohamed Ben Sulaiman said he was surprised by the “negative reaction” to Andretti and Cadillac’s announcement that they would join forces in a bid to join Formula 1 as a new entry.

Ben Sulayem has recently announced that Formula 1’s governing body will open an application process to evaluate new teams joining the F1 grid in future seasons. Soon after, Andretti confirmed his intention to apply to join Formula 1 in partnership with GM brand Cadillac, which Ben Sulay officially accepted.

However, there is significant opposition from both Formula 1 and F1 itself to new teams joining Formula 1. F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali has previously said he does not believe there is a need for more teams in the championship, and an unnamed senior team source told Reuters that Andretti’s chances of succeeding in the bid were ‘highly unlikely’ and the current ‘strong majority’. Teams opposed adding new competitors to the grid.

Formula 1 has introduced a $200m anti-dilution fee for any new entrants to limit how much funding the existing ten teams lose in sharing prize money and TV fees with each other. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has previously said that accepting new teams would mean less funding for existing teams.

“Group 11 means a 10% dilution for everyone,” Wolff said. “If someone can demonstrate that, we should all sit at the table and be happy for such an introduction. But this has not yet been revealed.

However, in a post on social media today, FIA President Ben Sulayem expressed his opinion that Andretti-Cadillac’s application is only a positive thing for Formula 1.

“It’s surprising that there are some negative reactions to the Cadillac and Andretti news,” said Ben Suleiman.

“The FIA has welcomed smaller and more successful organizations in recent years. We need to encourage F1 entries from global manufacturers like GM and Andretti and others. Interest from teams in growth markets adds diversity and broadens F1’s appeal.”

Ben Sulayem said the process of evaluating new entries to Formula 1 would take several months. Any new eligible teams can join when the new power unit formula is introduced in 2026.

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