"My wife was a real team member" - When Mario Andretti recalled sacrificing family time for his racing career

Mario Andretti was featured in Inc.’s YouTube video uploaded on June 17, 2019, and detailed how his passion for racing came in the way of his family time. The Former F1 and IndyCar driver explained what his family and wife had to endure to support his passion for racing.

Being an F1 or IndyCar driver ain't easy, as the driver travels across continents to various races for the better part of 9 months, and is at the factory or at a PR event during the time between the races. Mario Andretti highlighted the same and explained how the racing made him sacrifice family time. He said,

“I think the downside to the passion is that it's something very selfish to some degree. And when I look back at my life, my career, you know, as a family man, I see how much my wife, Dee Ann, you know, was a real, real team member, you know, to get behind me and never making me feel guilty of not spending enough time.” (3:28 onwards)

“At the same time, I know that, you know, I was not at any of my children's graduations, for instance, I get reminded by my younger daughter, Barbie, now and then. But, you know, the bottom line, however, is you need that family to sort of support you. And was there some guilt? Yes. Did my wife ever make me feel guilty? No.”

Mario Andretti began his top-tier open-wheel racing career in IndyCar before making a move to race in F1. He won the 1978 F1 Drivers' Championship with Lotus and returned to the US to race in the IndyCar Championship, where he'd conclude his open-wheel racing career.

Mario Andretti’s son Michael and grandson Marco followed in his footsteps and raced in the IndyCar series. The Andretti name continues to be part of the IndyCar championship with Michael Andretti formerly owning the Andretti Global team.

Mario Andretti detailed the objective for Cadillac's F1 2026 driver lineup

Formula One Management approved Cadillac’s F1 entry, which GM and Andretti will back for the 2026 F1 season. Mario Andretti was announced as Director of Cadillac's F1 team, and recently came out and detailed the team's driver plans for 2026.

Colton Herta has been reported as the favorite for the Cadillac seat, and Andretti commented on the same while revealing the objective for Cadillac F1’s 2026 Driver lineup. He said, (via NBC)

“Right now, I think yes. You mentioning candidates — he’s (Herta) definitely one that’s considered. I think you have to keep those options open, since it’s going to be a whole next season where we’re not going to be players.”

“From our standpoint, I think the play at the beginning would be to have one experienced driver – nationality doesn’t matter – and then a young American talent. These are the objectives at the moment,” he added

The Cadillac F1 engine is under development but there are concerns whether the power unit will be available for the 2026 season, hence the American team is reportedly seeking a supplier for the debut season.