"That is absolutely crass": F1 pundit 'appalled' at Andretti's application getting rejected by F1 

F1 pundit Peter Windsor recently mentioned that he was 'appalled' by the reasons given by F1 for rejecting Andretti's application to enter the sport as the 11th team.

The American giants made a valiant effort of entering the pinnacle of motorsport in the 2025 and 2026 seasons. They had already gotten the approval of FIA in late 2023 to join the grid as the 11th team but weren't able to satisfy the criteria for Formula One Management (FOM).

On his YouTube channel, Windsor was left shocked at one of the reasons given by F1 for the rejection, with the sport claiming that Andretti had more to gain by being associated with the sport than vice versa. He said (via PlanetF1):

“I’m absolutely appalled I think is the word at the way Formula 1 has rejected Michael Andretti. And let’s say the Andretti thing because Mario was for sure 100 percent behind all that and wanted to be involved, have his name obviously on that team."

He added:

“And I think the fact that they’ve rejected it is ridiculous, and beyond that, I think the reasons they’ve given are insulting and that one about, ‘We think Andretti would have benefitted more from the Formula 1 association than vice versa’, I mean, that is absolutely crass."

Andretti speaks about F1 rejecting their application

Andretti Cadillac expressed its disappointment over the news of FOM denying their entry to the sport in the 2026 season.

As per Autosport, the American motorsport giants said in their statement:

“Andretti Cadillac has reviewed the information Formula One Management Limited has shared and strongly disagrees with its contents. Andretti and Cadillac are two successful global motorsports organizations committed to placing a genuine American works team in F1, competing alongside the world’s best."

The team added that they were "proud" of the progress they made in the project while also acknowledging their fans, adding:

“We are proud of the significant progress we have already made on developing a highly competitive car and power unit with an experienced team behind it, and our work continues at pace. Andretti Cadillac would also like to acknowledge and thank the fans who have expressed their support.”

FOM left the door open for Andretti to try again in the 2028 season if they desired to enter the sport with a competitive power unit. It will be interesting to see if the American giants will try to apply again in 2028 after strongly facing rejection this time around.