When Mario Andretti gave US President Donald Trump a ride

Back in 2012, Former IndyCar star Mario Andretti took Donald Trump for a joyride in a two-seater Indy car through the streets of Manhattan. The pairing was brought together for a promotional video for the reality TV show "The Celebrity Apprentice", which was hosted by Trump at the time.

Since his retirement from motorsports in 2000, Mario Andretti continued to stay a relevant public figure, having appeared in numerous reality TV shows and commercials, including taking President Donald Trump on a joyride in an Indy car on the streets of Manhattan.

Before Trump ever became President in 2017, he was known primarily through his business ventures and as a flamboyant billionaire who lived a lavish life. He was also known for his gig as the host of the reality TV show The Celebrity Apprentice.

As a promotion for the show back in 2012, Mario Andretti was asked to take the billionaire on a ride across the bustling streets of Manhattan, New York. It was a rainy day, and the pair did not even wear helmets as they roared across the roads.

As Trump got into the back of the car, Andretti said:

"Hop in Mr. Trump. Don't wory, I won't mess up your hair."

After the ride, Andretti added:

"In my opinion, safer than a taxi. Through the streets of New York we went in the rain – and not a hair out of place.”

Mario Andretti's motorsports career lasted well over 30 years, as the American came out the other side of his journey as one of the greatest names in the sport, having claimed four IndyCar titles and the 1978 F1 Drivers' title. While he retired from full-time racing in 1994, he continued to race the 24 Hours of Le Mans up until the year 2000.

The 85-year-old has been a vocal Republican in recent years and has often shared his opinions on Trump and his policy decisions via his X account. Notably, in the 2016 Presidential election cycle, Andretti contributed a total of $12,300 to Republican causes, outlining his political affiliations.

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Mario Andretti shared a hilarious message back in 2016 along with images from his ride with Donald Trump

Mario Andretti joins Rep. John James for Capitol Hill Press Conference - Source: Getty

Mario shared a tongue-in-cheek message back in 2016, suggesting he is giving Donald Trump a ride to the White House, after the latter's Presidential election victory in November of the same year. The American driver added the image from back in 2012 as part of the post on X [known then as Twitter]. He wrote in a caption:

"Got my 2-seater out today to take to The White House for his meeting with President Obama. Should arrive early"

In 2016, during Trump’s presidential campaign, Andretti also expressed his feelings that he supported the businessman in his race with Hillary Clinton. Recently, the American has been in the news after he was announced to be one of the board members of the new Cadillac F1 team for the 2026 season, which is backed by General Motors.