Domenicali criticises Andretti for manner of attempted F1 entry

Stefano Domenicali has labelled Andretti Autosport's attempts to lobby for an entry into Formula 1 in 2026 as "not smart."

The F1 president and CEO criticised the efforts of former Grand Prix driver Michael Andretti to have his eponymous outfit become the 11th team on the grid from the 2026 season.

Andretti formally announced their intention to apply to become a new team shortly after FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem declared his aim to set up an 'Expression of Interest' process in early January.

Andretti's persistent efforts drew the backing of a new OEM, in the shape of General Motors and their Cadillac brand.

However, despite Ben Sulayem's positive response to the idea of Andretti joining the F1 grid, F1 itself and eight of the 10 teams have been lukewarm.

One major sticking point is that of prize money and the pot being diluted by the addition of an 11th team, meaning the other 10 would lose a chunk of their income - something Michael had claimed was them being "greedy."

This comment has not gone down well with Domenicali.

Domenicali criticises Andretti approach

Andretti lobbied the other 10 teams heavily in 2022, especially at the Miami Grand Prix in May.

RacingNews365.com understands that Michael was only able to get the agreement of two of the 10 teams to his plans for an entry - namely Alpine and McLaren.

Should he be granted an entry, the team are linked with a supply of Renault/Alpine power units, badged as Cadillac, with the Andretti family also enjoying close links to McLaren and boss Zak Brown.

And while Domenicali is optimistic of an 11th team, he insists the process must be respected.

"First of all, we are very welcoming of everyone that is bringing value to the racing," Domenicali told Sky Sports F1.

"I think we need to respect everyone, there are teams like Mario and Michael Andretti being very vocal about their will to enter Formula 1, but in my view [it is] not smart to say that teams are greedy.

"There are others that are much less vocal that would like to come into Formula 1, so there is a process to respect and we will make sure together with the FIA that the process will be respected.

"If all the elements are there, [any team] will be very welcome. There are a lot of dimensions to consider and we don't have to overreact because someone is pushing the system.

"The process will be done seriously in the right way.

"We need to be prudent, it may seems this is a personal negative attack on Andretti but it is not the case.

"We need to be serious and professional in evaluating all the elements."