Glaring Andretti F1 approach error found by Steiner as bid hangs by a thread

For months, Andretti Global looked set to secure its place as the 11th Formula 1 team… that is, until a rejection from Formula One Management brought the team back to reality.

In an exclusive interview with RacingNews365, former Haas boss Guenther Steiner — who was in charge of the Gene Haas-run team when it entered Formula 1 back in 2016 — has spoken out about where he feels the Andretti F1 bid went wrong.

Guenther Steiner: Andretti F1 was too public about its bid

When the Haas Formula 1 team began pursuing a potential Formula 1 team in 2014, Gene Haas and eventual team boss Guenther Steiner kept their plans quiet as they pursued entry onto the Formula 1 grid.

That privacy, Steiner reckons, helped Haas F1 get off the ground and gain favor with both the FIA and the FOM

Speaking to RacingNews365 , Steiner admitted that gaining entry to the Formula 1 grid was easier when Haas was pursuing entry, as “This time the process was tightened up because the stakes were much higher with every team worth a billion dollars, but you need to be careful with what you do.”

Steiner pointed out that Andretti’s biggest issue lies in the fact that the team was able to secure the FIA’s approval, but not the FOM — and having agreements from both of those entities is required to compete in the top level of international open-wheel racing.

Catch up on the Andretti F1 saga:

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👉 Andretti Global and Group 1001: How a racing sponsorship became team co-ownership

According to Steiner’s conversation with RacingNews365 , Haas “got agreements from both [the FIA and FOM] together.”

“First you make the deal,” he said, “then you go public. You don’t go public and try and make the deal.”

One of the biggest critiques about the Andretti Global bid has revolved around the way team owner Michael Andretti pursued entry. In 2022, for example, Andretti attended the Miami Grand Prix in hopes of convincing all 10 team bosses to sign their names on a formal expression of interest stating that they would like Andretti to join the grid.

Only Zak Brown from McLaren and Laurent Rossi of Alpine signed the petition.

When the FIA opened up the applications for teams to express interest in joining the F1 grid in 2023, Andretti Global submitted its application — and publicly shared its intentions and goals every step of the way.

When the bid was rejected by the FOM, Mario Andretti visited U.S. Congress, which resulted in an antitrust investigation kicked off by the Department of Justice.

According to Steiner, it wasn’t a recipe for success — but he still feels that there’s a way for Andretti, or at least Cadillac, to join the field.

“FOM left the door open in saying, ‘Show us what you can do with the engine’,” Steiner told RacingNews365 .

However, he admitted, “I have no idea if GM has shown something to FOM or not, but that is what you have to do.”

Read next: Cadillac’s European push could make sense of its F1 hopes without Andretti