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McLaren CEO Zak Brown says he isn’t surprised that his fellow F1 team bosses are taking a “selfish view” over the addition of an 11th team.
With F1’s value growing by the day in recent years, Brown felt it was reasonable for some teams to become risk-averse and protect their revenue streams. Speaking to the media, he said:
“I’m not surprised at all that some of the race teams take a very selfish view on what should and shouldn’t happen in motor racing. I don’t think that is anything new. We’ve got a great spectacle as it is so I understand why some people would go ‘We’ve got 10 very healthy teams, we’re not at risk of losing a team’ whereas historically, in the last 20 years, there has always been a team or two on the brink.”
Following Andretti Global’s failed bid to take over the Sauber-Alfa Romeo operations last year, the American outfit has been trying to field its team for the 2024 season.
Existing teams, however, have not expressed enthusiasm towards the idea, with many believing that a new entrant would only serve to dilute their interests in the sport.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, a prominent voice among the ones opposing Andretti’s entry, felt that a new entrant must ensure that they “add value” to the sport, rather than negatively impacting the revenue of existing teams. Most team bosses across the grid share Wolff’s views on the matter, with McLaren and Alpine being the only exceptions.
F1 can accommodate two more “quality teams”, says McLaren boss
McLaren CEO Zak Brown felt that F1 could easily accommodate 12 teams with little impact as long as the new entrants were “quality teams”. Brown felt that it would be unfair for F1 to turn away Andretti, especially given FOM’s recent efforts to woo Porsche and Audi for an eventual entry in 2026. He said:
“Whether you buy or invest in an existing team or start one, it shows how healthy the sport is now that you have real people and investors that own different sports and OEMs that are trying to figure out a way to get into the sport. It’s achieved what [owners] Liberty [Media] has wanted to achieve which is to build franchise value for the racing teams.”
Furthermore, Brown countered his rivals’ arguments about Andretti’s entry diluting existing players’ stake in the sport, pointing out the immense success that the American outfit has had in various categories of motorsport over the years. He felt that with its huge reach in North America, Andretti could help F1 establish a solid foothold in the United States.
