Maffei: Andretti Cadillac project can be realized

The chance of another team in Formula 1 has increased slightly, as Liberty Media has made it clear that it is interested in entering the US car manufacturer’s championship.

This is a joint project of Andretti Global and Cadillac, on whose behalf the FIA ​​has applied to participate in the World Championship, and Greg Maffei, CEO of Liberty Corporation, shared some thoughts on the subject.

“The real problem is there are probably four or five circuits where the pits and paddocks are such that it will be difficult to make room for an eleventh team,” said Maffei on the Webber Webcast. “Probably by spending some money and time on it, this can be solved. But the snap of fingers does not solve such problems. At the same time, there will be no such problem in Las Vegas, we have taken care of everything.”

According to him, it will be more difficult to solve the problem of redistribution of prize payments, which in the future will have to be divided not into 10 parts, as now, but into 11, and, of course, the teams are not interested in this.

“They are not very excited about the prospect of dividing the prize money into 11 parts,” Maffei continued. “Whatever amounts are offered as franchise fees will not adequately offset the reduction in each individual share if the prize money is distributed with the expectation of an 11th team.”

But, according to him, now that Michael Andretti’s project has gained the support of one of General Motors’ divisions, this could become a serious argument in favor of Andretti Cadillac:

“I think there are reasons to believe that this project can be implemented. We are lucky that there are so many factory teams in Formula 1 now, but if there are more, especially if an American car manufacturer enters the championship, that can of course only be welcomed.