Liberty Media Under Investigation For Rejecting Andretti Cadillac F1 Team
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Liberty Media, the owner of Formula One Group, has announced that it is officially under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) after rejecting the Andretti Cadillac F1 effort.
According to Motorsport, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei dropped the news in the company’s quarterly earnings call. The DoJ Antitrust Division is currently examining the legality of Formula 1 barring Andretti Cadillac from entry into the World Championship.
“Looking at Andretti, as you saw this morning, we announced that there is a DoJ investigation,” Maffei said. “We intend to fully cooperate with that investigation, including any related requests for information. We believe our determination, F1’s determination, was in compliance with all applicable US antitrust laws, and we’ve detailed the rationale for our decision, vis-à-vis Andretti in prior statements.”
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) accepted the application on a technical level, but F1 itself continues to reject it, preventing the team from advancing into the sport. F1’s reasoning? It doesn’t believe Andretti will bring a competitive car to the grid, and would not add commercial value to the sport.
Additionally, the existing F1 teams spoke out against expanding the grid to 11 teams to include Andretti Cadillac, citing concerns about diluting the sport’s revenue pool.
“We are certainly not against the idea that any expansion is wrong,” Maffei added. “There is a methodology for expansion that requires approval of the FIA and the F1 and both groups have to find the criteria met. We’re certainly open to new entrants making applications and potentially being approved if those requirements are met.”
It’s worth noting that GM itself registered to become a power unit manufacturer for the series in 2028. The automaker is still confident that the Andretti Cadillac F1 team will become a reality and that fans could expect the luxury marque to hit the racing circuit within the next few seasons. Andretti has signed on talent like Pat Symonds to make it happen, and has already built a facility dedicated to Cadillac F1 operations in Silverstone.
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They let Ford in…..no reason the better Cadillac should be denied
GM is fine, its Andretti that they were primarily blocking.
they are building a huge facility by me, the steel framing is up….