"An American team that wants to be developing American drivers" - Michael Andretti outlines goal for his F1 team

Michael Andretti says he wants to develop American drivers for a “legitimate shot” at F1 if his bid to establish the 11th team from the 2024 season is successful. The veteran racing team owner says he wants to ensure drivers from the United States get genuine opportunities within the sport.

Speaking to the Motorsport Network, he said:

“We want to be an American team that wants to be developing American drivers for the future. We want to pave the way to F1. And we would know they’re going to get a legitimate shot. There’s not going to be any that they’re out there full of fuel and they don’t know it, that type of thing.”

Andretti's bid to establish a new team is currently in limbo, following opposition from existing outfits on the grid who are unwilling to let an additional player “dilute their stakes” in the sport.

One of the biggest selling points for Andretti’s entry into the sport has been their enormous influence in the US and North America as a whole. With their decades-long experience in various categories of motorsports, Andretti could help the sport establish a strong foothold in the continent, at a time when the FOM has been striving to do just that.

Despite that, team bosses such as Red Bull’s Christian Horner are more inclined towards providing opportunities for American drivers to shore up support in the US rather than adding a team from the country.

Andretti, however, countered Horner’s arguments and felt that only an American team could provide a legitimate shot at the sport for drivers from the country. He added, saying:

“I want to make it where we can bring kids out of go-karts and give them the path, and if they’re good enough, they’ll hopefully get to Formula 1, and we’ll have the team to do it. There’s nobody out there that’s doing that. That’s where we want to be. There’s no real legitimate road for an American driver to get into F1. There just isn’t.”

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Andretti committed to bringing IndyCar star Colton Herta to F1

Michael Andretti believes rising IndyCar driver Colton Herta deserves to be in F1 and hopes to bring the young American into the sport if his bid to establish a new team is successful. He said:

“[Colton Herta] should be in F1 right now, he’s got that talent, but they ran out of money, so they came back to the States. So, he went [the IndyCar] route.”

When Michael Andretti tried to take over the Sauber-run Alfa Romeo operations last season, Herta was thought to be the prime candidate to make a jump to F1 from IndyCar.

Since the collapse of that deal, Herta’s name has been doing rounds elsewhere, with rumors suggesting that he may be replacing Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren next season.