Andretti has been given approval by the FIA to join the F1 grid from 2025 at the earliest, subject to it agreeing a commercial deal with FOM - which is far from guaranteed.
Andretti plans to bring the Cadillac name into F1 with it, but the timeframe makes it unlikely that it will have its own power unit ready for several years. It means the American squad would need a customer deal in place for any initial foray in F1.
This had originally been expected to be a supply of Renault engines, but it emerged last week that a pre-contract the team had with the French manufacturer had now lapsed, and talks had not resumed.
The situation means that, for now, Andretti does not have a firm engine contract in place.
Although F1’s current sporting regulations are designed to ensure that no team is left without a power unit supply, there is some debate about whether or not a new entry is afforded the same privilege as current competitors of being guaranteed engines.
Ben Sulayem says he is clear, however, that Andretti would qualify for a supply from 2025 or 2026 as he said the long-term aim was for General Motors/Cadillac to produce its own power unit.
“We are demanding that and we will see that,” Ben Sulayem told selected media, including Autosport, about the potential for an engine from GM. “But engines are not built in four or five years.
“At the beginning, Andretti will have to agree on one of two engines.”
Ben Sulayem believes that Appendix 6 of F1’s Sporting Regulations will apply to Andretti in giving it the option of requesting a supply from one of the manufacturers that is supplying the fewest customer teams.
Source: Autosport