FIA rejects bids for new F1 teams including one boasting of £1bn investment

22 September 2023 , 14:16

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The FIA is close to announcing decisions from its Expressions of Interest process for new F1 teams (Image: HOCH ZWEI/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

The FIA is set to reject all but one of the proposals submitted by those wanting to create a new Formula 1 team.

The sport's governing body launched its Expressions of Interest process earlier this year, inviting prospective teams to submit their plans. For several months, now, the four parties who met the deadline have had their submissions picked apart with a fine toothcomb by the FIA.

Andretti Global is the most high-profile bidder as a successful motorsport team in several top categories. Plus, its case is strengthened by a team-up with carmaker General Motors through its Cadillac brand.

But Andretti was not the only company to submit a proposal. Two Formula 2 teams, Hitech Grand Prix and Rodin Carlin, threw their hats in the ring, while Asian start-up LKY SUNZ also made a bid.

But three of those bids are set to be rejected. While the FIA chose not to specify which bids remain in he race, only the Andretti-Cadillac bid is believed to have made it through to the final stage of its process.

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An FIA spokesperson told Mirror Sport: "The analysis of submissions from potential new entrants to the FIA Formula One World Championship has progressed and several candidates have now been informed that their application has not been approved. More information on other submissions will be provided in due course."

Even if given final approval by the FIA, Andretti would still need F1 itself to approve its admittance. And the existing teams remain, for the most part, against the idea of an 11th outfit joining as the current £163m dilution fee is well short of the level of financial compensation they would want.

A figure three times that size is likely to be the minimum required before that stance begins to soften. LKY SUNZ claimed on Friday in a press release that it had secured investment from an American billionaire and that it was willing to pay that much higher dilution fee.

It is not currently known why the bids from LKY SUNZ, Rodin Carlin and Hitech will be rejected. But it seems clear that, in at least one regard, each of those bids fell short of the FIA's strict requirements around financial and environmental sustainability.

Meanwhile, Andretti presses on with the construction of its brand-new racing facility in Fishers, Indiana, which will be the future headquarters of its entire operation. It plans to have the building operational by 2025, in line with its projected entry date into F1 if given approval to join.

Daniel Moxon