Michael Andretti made an offer at the end of the 2021 season to take over the power of the Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team, although the deal fell through. Since then, the American has tried again to enter the Grand Circus grid, but this time with his own outfit, with an entry that is on the table of the FIA.
In a talk by Mario Andretti , father of the one who wants to be the new owner of a team and world champion in 1978, with the youtuber David Land, he was questioned if he had always had that idea in his head: “Michael left the cockpit too soon He saw his future more as a driver, and he always wanted to own a team, he loved the business part.”
“You can see he’s doing very well. I don’t know how many team owners are involved in as many disciplines as Michael,” said the only American F1 world champion.
About the Andretti team’s IndyCar driver, Colton Herta , he said: “Look at the talent he has already shown. At 15 years old he was in Europe, and he was racing alongside others who are enshrined in Formula 1, like Lando Norris in the F4”.
“He went through the categories and won in all of them, and then he reached the highest level in the United States, where he also won,” Mario Andretti continued. “Not with a strategy or anything, but with speed, pure speed, and fantastic elegant driving.”
During the end of the 2021 season it was speculated that Colton Herta could land in Formula 1 at Alfa Romeo after it was announced that Antonio Giovinazzi would not continue with the Swiss team.
However, a detail was not known that would have fueled the rumors even more, and that is that the young driver visited the simulator of those from Hinwil, and managed to be faster than the Alfa Romeo holders, the aforementioned Giovinazzi, and Kimi Raikkonen.
“When we had almost closed the deal with Sauber, he spent a week in the simulator, and on the third day he was already faster than Giovinazzi and Raikkonen, we couldn’t wait to get him into a Formula 1 car,” said Andretti.
“Actually, it was going to be in Abu Dhabi, but the deal fell through, and the owners wanted to keep 20%, as well as have full control. There was no way we could agree to that,” he concluded.
