LAS VEGAS (AP) — Formula 1 on Monday at last said it will expand its grid in 2026 to make room for an American team that is partnered with General Motors.
“As the pinnacle of motorsports, F1 demands boundary-pushing innovation and excellence. It’s an honor for General Motors and Cadillac to join the world’s premier racing series, and we’re committed to competing with passion and integrity to elevate the sport for race fans around the world," GM President Mark Reuss said. "This is a global stage for us to demonstrate GM’s engineering expertise and technology leadership at an entirely new level.”
The approval ends years of wrangling that launched a U.S. Justice Department investigation into why Colorado-based Liberty Media, the commercial rights holder of F1, would not approve the team initially started by Michael Andretti.
Andretti in September stepped aside from leading his namesake organization, so the 11th team will be called Cadillac F1 and be run by new Andretti Global majority owners Dan Towriss and Mark Walter. The team will use Ferrari engines its first two years until GM has a Cadillac engine built for competition in time for the 2028 season.
Towriss is the the CEO and president of Group 1001 and entered motorsports via Andretti's IndyCar team when he signed on financial savings platform Gainbridge as a sponsor. Towriss is now a major part of the motorsports scene with ownership stakes in both Spire Motorsports' NASCAR team and Wayne Taylor Racing's sports car team.
Walter is the chief executive of financial services firm Guggenheim Partners and the controlling owner of both the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers and Premier League club Chelsea.
“We’re excited to partner with General Motors in bringing a dynamic presence to Formula 1," Towriss said. “Together, we’re assembling a world-class team that will embody American innovation and deliver unforgettable moments to race fans around the world.”
Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 world champion, will have an ambassador role with Cadillac F1. But his son, Michael, will have no official position with the organization now that he has scaled back his involvement with Andretti Global.
“The Cadillac F1 Team is made up of a strong group of people that have worked tirelessly to build an American works team,” Michael Andretti posted on social media. “I’m very proud of the hard work they have put in and congratulate all involved on this momentous next step. I will be cheering for you!”
The approval has been in works for weeks but was held until after last weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix to not overshadow the showcase event of the Liberty Media portfolio. Max Verstappen won his fourth consecutive championship in Saturday night's race, the third and final stop in the United States for the top motorsports series in the world.
Grid expansion in F1 is both infrequent and often unsuccessful. Four teams were granted entries in 2010 that should have pushed the grid to 13 teams and 26 cars for the first time since 1995. One team never made it to the grid and the other three had vanished by 2017.
There is only one American team on the current F1 grid — owned by California businessman Gene Haas — but it is not particularly competitive and does not field American drivers. Andretti’s dream was to field a truly American team with American drivers.
The fight to add this team has been going on for three-plus years and F1 initially denied the application despite approval from F1 sanctioning body FIA. The existing 10 teams, who have no voice in the matter, also largely opposed expansion because of the dilution in prize money and the billions of dollars they’ve already invested in the series.
Andretti in 2020 tried and failed to buy the existing Sauber team. From there, he applied for grid expansion and partnered with GM, the top-selling manufacturer in the United States. The inclusion of GM was championed by the FIA and president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who said Michael Andretti’s application was the only one of seven applicants to meet all required criteria to expand F1’s current grid.
“General Motors is a huge global brand and powerhouse in the OEM world and is working with impressive partners," Ben Sulayem said Monday. "I am fully supportive of the efforts made by the FIA, Formula 1, GM and the team to maintain dialogue and work towards this outcome of an agreement in principle to progress this application."
Despite the FIA's acceptance of Andretti and General Motors from the start, F1 wasn't interested in Andretti — but did want GM. At one point, F1 asked GM to find another team to partner with besides Andretti. GM refused and F1 said it would revisit the Andretti application if and when Cadillac had an engine ready to compete.
“Formula 1 has maintained a dialogue with General Motors, and its partners at TWG Global, regarding the viability of an entry following the commercial assessment and decision made by Formula 1 in January 2024,” F1 said in a statement. “Over the course of this year, they have achieved operational milestones and made clear their commitment to brand the 11th team GM/Cadillac, and that GM will enter as an engine supplier at a later time. Formula 1 is therefore pleased to move forward with this application process."
Yet another major shift in the debate over grid expansion occurred earlier this month with the announced resignation of Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei, who was largely believed to be one of the biggest opponents of the Andretti entry.
“With Formula 1’s continued growth plans in the US, we have always believed that welcoming an impressive US brand like GM/Cadillac to the grid and GM as a future power unit supplier could bring additional value and interest to the sport," Maffei said. "We credit the leadership of General Motors and their partners with significant progress in their readiness to enter Formula 1."
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
The field crowds together at the start of the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Matt York)
Mercedes driver George Russell, of Britain, leads the field during the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Matt York)
FIUGGI, Italy (AP) — Foreign ministers from the world’s leading industrialized nations expressed cautious optimism Monday about possible progress on a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
The top diplomats met for the final time before a new U.S. administration takes office with wars raging in the Mideast and Ukraine.
“Knock on wood,” Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said as he opened the Group of Seven meeting outside Rome. “We are perhaps close to a ceasefire in Lebanon," he said. "Let's hope it's true and that there's no backing down at the last-minute.”
A ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon was foremost on the agenda of the G7 meeting in Fiuggi, outside Rome, that gathered ministers from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, in the last G7 encounter of the Biden administration.
For the first time, the G7 ministers were joined by their counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, the so-called “Arab Quintet,” as well as the Secretary General of the Arab League.
“Everyone favors a ceasefire in both scenarios,” Tajani told reporters, adding that Italy had offered to take on an even greater peacekeeping role in Lebanon to oversee any ceasefire deal.
As the ministers arrived in Italy, Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Mike Herzog, told Israeli Army Radio on Monday a ceasefire deal to end fighting between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah could be reached “within days.”
Several Arab ministers reiterated calls for a ceasefire in both Lebanon and Gaza during a G7-affiliated conference in Rome.
“We need a ceasefire, a permanent ceasefire. That will stop the killings and stop the destruction and restore a sense of normalcy to life,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told the conference.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, for his part, reaffirmed that Cairo would host a minister-level conference next Monday on mobilizing international aid for Gaza.
The so-called “Quintet” has been working with the U.S. to finalize a “day after” plan for Gaza. There is some urgency to make progress before the Trump administration takes over in January. President-elect Donald Trump is expected to pursue a policy that strongly favors Israel over the aspirations of the Palestinians.
Tajani added another item to the G7 agenda last week after the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and Hamas’ military chief.
Italy is a founding member of the court and hosted the 1998 Rome conference that gave birth to it. But Italy’s right-wing government has been a strong supporter of Israel after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, while also providing humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza.
The Italian government has taken a cautious line, reaffirming its support and respect for the court but expressing concern that the warrants were politically motivated. The United States, Israel's closest ally, has called the warrants “outrageous.”
Tajani acknowledged consensus hadn't been reached among the G7 members but hoped for agreement to have a unified position. He noted that all sides need Netanyahu to make any deal.
“We can also not agree with how his government has led the reaction after the massacre of Oct. 7, but now we have to deal with Netanyahu to arrive at peace in Lebanon, peace in Palestine,” Tajani said.
Nathalie Tocci, director of the Rome-based Institute for International Affairs think tank, warned that inserting the ICC warrant into the G7 agenda was risky, since the U.S. is the lone member that is not a signatory to the court and yet tends to dictate the G7 line.
“If Italy and the other (five G7) signatories of the ICC are unable to maintain the line on international law, they will not only erode it anyway but will be acting against our interests,” Tocci wrote in La Stampa daily this weekend, recalling Italy’s recourse to international law in demanding protection for Italian U.N. peacekeepers who have come under fire in southern Lebanon.
The other major talking point of the G7 meeting is Ukraine, and tensions have only heightened since Russia attacked Ukraine last week with an experimental, hypersonic ballistic missile that escalated the nearly 33-month-old war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said the strike was retaliation for Kyiv’s use of U.S. and British longer-range missiles capable of striking deeper into Russian territory.
The G7 has been at the forefront of providing military and economic support for Ukraine since Russia’s invasion in February 2022 and G7 members are particularly concerned about how a Trump administration will change the U.S. approach.
Trump has criticized the billions of dollars that the Biden administration has poured into Ukraine and has said he could end the war in 24 hours, comments that appear to suggest he would press Ukraine to surrender territory that Russia now occupies.
“It’s hugely important that this G7, that all colleagues across the G7 continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it lasts,” British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said as he arrived. He announced new sanctions on vessels of Russia's “shadow fleet” of ships that are evading sanctions to export Russian oil.
“And we are confident that Ukraine can have the funds and the military equipment and kit to get through 2025,” Lammy said.
The G7 foreign ministers’ meeting, the second of the Italian presidency after ministers gathered in Capri in April, is being held in the medieval town of Fiuggi southeast of Rome, best known for its thermal spas.
On Monday, which coincides with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, ministers were attending the inauguration of a red bench meant to symbolize Italy’s focus on fighting gender-based violence.
Over the weekend, tens of thousands of people marched in Rome to protest gender-based violence, which in Italy so far this year has claimed the lives of 99 women, according to a report last week by the Eures think tank.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, greets Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly as she arrives for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, welcomes US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, welcomes US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
From left, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken , French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy, and European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell pose for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, greets European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell as he arrives for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, left, welcomes Japan's Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, welcomes France's Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, welcomes Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, welcomes U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
From left, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken , French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy, and European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell pose for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
From left, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, France's Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, Italy's Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Japan's Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, Germany's Foreign Affairs Minister Annalena Baerbock, Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell pose for a family photo at the G7 Foreign Ministers meeting in Anagni, central Italy, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (Andreas Solaro/Pool Photo via AP)
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, right, greets German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, as she arrives for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, greets German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, as she arrives for a family photo at the G7 of foreign Ministers in Anagni, some 70 kilometers south-east of Rome, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
FILE - Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani addresses the "Italy Ukraine business forum" in Rome, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, File)