22/05/2024
NEWS STORY
A number of U.S. Senators have written to President Joe Biden asking him to investigate F1's rejection of Andretti's bid to enter the sport.
Senator Amy Klobuchar has called on the Justice Department's Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission to look into the decision more closely suggesting that F1's rejection of Andretti may violate American antitrust laws.
In the letter, which is co-signed by Democrat senators Gary Peters, Alex Padilla and Debbie Stabenow - whose home state of Michigan is home to General Motors - and Republican senator Todd Young of Indiana - in which Andretti is headquartered - it is claimed that F1 appears to be working on behalf of existing teams and "foreign automakers" to block Andretti, making clear that any "group boycott" violates U.S. antitrust laws.
Like Andretti, the Senators are particularly irked by F1's claim that Andretti would not "bring value" to the sport and would not be competitive.
"The vast majority of F1 teams fail to win races in a given season," states the letter. "In 2023, a single team won all but one race, and half the teams in F1 have failed to win a race in the past 4 seasons combined.
"This competitive balance has not been the hallmark of F1 racing and adding a team backed by a major U.S. car manufacturer is likely to enhance competitiveness, not reduce it."
As for not adding value, the letter points to the increasing success of the sport in the U.S.
"Most striking, however, was FOM's determination that bringing Team Andretti-Cadillac into F1 would not 'add value to the Championship'. While F1 currently does not have an American-based team, F1 has been determined to increase its presence in the U.S. market," states the letter.
"Over the past few years, more than 1 million Americans have tuned into each F1 race, more than doubling over the past few seasons. Last year, F1 hosted three races in America, in Miami, Las Vegas, and Austin, while no other country hosted more than a single race. Even individual teams, such as Red Bull, are courting U.S. fans by hosting events in U.S. cities to 'get up close and personal with the marvel of Formula One engineering, bringing together F1 fans'.
"Clearly there is a financial incentive to adding an American team to F1's roster, and there is no reason Team Andretti-Cadillac should be blocked unless FOM is trying to insulate its current partners from competition."
On a day that Andretti announced the recruitment of F1's own technical director, it is clear that the American team has no intention of relenting... an attitude that no doubt reflects its ambitions on track if/when it is given the all-clear.