Guenther Steiner tells Andretti what they now ‘have to do’ to earn a place in Formula 1

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Guenther Steiner believes Andretti still has a chance at making it onto the Formula 1 grid, despite having its entry initially rejected by the commercial rights holder.

Andretti had been keen on making it to the F1 grid after initially passing the FIA checks during the tender process in 2023 before it had to move on to commercial matters with Formula One Management (FOM).

In the months leading up to FOM’s decision, several teams expressed concerns over whether Andretti showed accretive qualities to be on the grid and worried that any increase to the grid numbers would decrease their share of the prize pot.

FOM would later go on to reject their bid on the basis that it did not add enough commercial value, believing that it would only benefit Andretti. They also questioned the technical challenges that Andretti would have to undertake by building a car for the 2025 season and a separate car for 2026.

While Cadillac has expressed some interest in buying a current team, Guenther Steiner has explained why the American team could still have another chance at joining the grid when speaking to RacingNews365.

Guenther Steiner explains why there is a ‘chance’ for Andretti in F1

Even though they rejected Andretti, FOM did leave the door open on purpose to a potential entry as early as 2027 if they can bring in Cadillac as an OEM power unit manufacturer.

Andretti has claimed that it continues to work ‘at pace’ having reportedly drawn up plans to build a full-sized 2024 chassis for early homologation testing.

According to Steiner, the team could draw on other examples if it wants to demonstrate to FOM that it has commercial value.

“There is a chance. FOM left the door open in saying, ‘Show us what you can do with the engine’. I have no idea if GM has shown something to FOM or not, but that is what you have to do.

“Red Bull is making its powertrain. They showed what they are going to do, and it was pretty straightforward afterwards. Audi put up a new building in Germany to say, ‘This is the investment we are going to make’, but I haven’t heard anything about GM. I don’t know everything.”

Andretti could join the grid in time for new regulations

There is optimism that Andretti could still join the grid in time for the 2026 season having not ‘backed off’ since F1 rejected their entry.

Andretti also gained support of US Congress after a letter signed by 12 congress members was sent to Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei demanding answers over their failed bid.

READ MORE: ‘The thinking is’ that 18-title team will join the Formula 1 grid in 2026

Behind the scenes it was reported that Andretti could be exploring a deal to buy Alpine, which would enable them to take over the Enstone outfit.

Renault has recently decided to kill off its F1 engine project for 2026, leaving the team in uncertainty as they switch to customer engines for the future.