FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said that only Andretti have made their intentions known 'directly' about potentially joining the F1 grid.

Ben Sulayem called for expressions of interest from parties to potentially join the F1 grid in the future, and Andretti were quick to respond.

They've been vocal about their intentions to try and join the sport for some time, though the feeling from a number of the teams and F1 towards their plans has felt lukewarm at best.

Indeed, the FIA's standpoint has been considerably more positive, with president Mohammed Ben Sulayem making no secret over his hopes that Andretti can be successful and join, with them teaming up with General Motors to potentially form an Andretti Cadillac outfit.

As yet, nothing is official and Andretti Cadillac still need to submit their formal expression of interest but the intent to get into F1 is clear, and from the FIA president's perspective it is only they that have expressed their plans directly.

Speaking to Autosport when attending the opening round of the World Rally Championship - the Rallye Monte Carlo - Ben Sulayem said that "up to now" Andretti had been the only team to contact "us directly."

Expanding on the Andretti bid, he again underlined his hopes that the team would get into the sport:

"How can we say no to a big manufacturer?”

“We talk about the United States, we have three races there, it’s very healthy. But I am elected not to make money, I’m elected to sustain motorsport, clearly.”

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Time will ultimately tell as to how the Andretti Cadillac bid goes.

The involvement of GM and Cadillac in the bid appears to have softened the stance a little from some detractors over Andretti's bid, with Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff saying:

"Cadillac and GM, that's a statement. Certainly them joining forces with Andretti is definitely a positive, gives it another angle that may or may not be beneficial for Formula 1. Nobody would ever question GM or Cadillac’s pedigree in motorsport and obviously as a global auto company." 

Ultimately, a new team can only arrive if the FIA, F1 and the teams all agree to it, though, and so there's clearly still some work to be done before Andretti, or anyone else, expands the current grid.


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