Ford ‘would welcome’ General Motors competition in F1

Mario Andretti claims Liberty CEO Greg Maffei told him Andretti would never enter F1.
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  • Ford will partner with Red Bull from 2026 season
  • Andretti and Cadillac’s joint F1 entry bid has so far proved unsuccessful

Ford Performance’s global director, Mark Rushbrook, has revealed that the company would love to go up against General Motors (GM) once it debuts in Formula One.

Ford will partner with Red Bull from the 2026 season, but the joint entry bid between Andretti and GM subsidiary Cadillac has not been met with approval from Formula One executives so far.

“We go racing to compete against other manufacturers, and there’s already a lot of manufacturers in Formula One, but we’d certainly love to welcome General Motors into the sport,” Rushbrook told The Associated Press (AP).

“They have that ability to come in as a power unit manufacturer independent of any specific team, they could partner with any of the existing ten teams. So we welcome them, for sure. And same for Andretti. We certainly don’t have anything against Andretti.”



GM president Mark Reuss welcomed the vote of confidence from its competitors.

‘Thank you Mark Rushbrook – and we would welcome Ford to IndyCar for enhancing American open wheel racing as well,’ he wrote on social media.

GM are one of two engine suppliers in IndyCar, alongside Japanese manufacturer Honda.

Andretti’s noisy, but as yet unsuccessful, attempt to enter Formula One has been offered some hope, though, with Formula One leaving the door open for the 2028 season.

The US-based team initially targeted the 2025 season, setting up a UK base in Silverstone and hiring Formula One’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds to underline the weight of its bid.

However, NBC reported a recent flashpoint between Mario Andretti and Liberty Media chief executive Greg Maffei that suggests the door is firmly shut on an Andretti Formula One team.

According to Andretti, Maffei told him: “I will do everything in my power to see that Michael [Mario’s son] never enters Formula One.”

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