FIA president announces new direction for 2023 in blow for Mercedes…

Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff address 2021 F1 rumours in 2019

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FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem will open bids for new teams to join F1. Expressions of interest to join the series will likely launch in 2023, paving the way for more than 10 teams to enter the sport.

Ben Sulayem made the announcement on Twitter by posting: “I have asked my @FIA team to look at launching an Expressions of Interest process for prospective new teams for the FIA @F1 World Championship.” The update will be positive news for ex-F1 star Michael Andretti who has targeted a spot on the grid.

Andretti has previously targeted a 2024 entry to ensure they were up and running ahead of the new regulation changes in 2026. However, their plans have faltered after opposition from some team principals around their planned entry.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has been among the most critical of introducing new teams in a fear it could dilute F1. He explained: “We have 10 entries today, we divide the prize fund among those 10 entries. We have invested considerable amounts over the last 10 years.

“I mean, each of the organisations that’s sitting here on the podium has probably put more than a billion into the Formula 1 projects over the years, so it needs to be accretive. If a team comes in, how can you demonstrate that you’re bringing in more money than it’s actually costing: because the 11th team means a 10 per cent dilution for everybody else.”

F1 last allowed a string of new teams to enter F1 back in 2010 with all three struggling for pace compared to their rivals. HRT were wight seconds off the pace at their debut race in Bahrain and failed to score any points before folding at the end of the 2012 season.

Lotus was renamed Caterham in 2012 but didn’t make any inroads into the midfield before collapsing mid-way through 2014. Manor Marussia was the most successful of the new teams with Jules Bianchi picking up points for the squad at the 2014 Monaco GP.

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However, the British-based team also left F1 after the 2016 season after planned investment failed to materialise. McLaren boss Zak Brown agrees with Wolff that teams needed to bring something to the grid.

However, he backed the Andretti project to deliver and is among one of the only team bosses to support the American team’s plans. Brown commented: “I agree with Toto. You know, we’ve got 10 great teams, and 11th and the 12th team need to add value to the sport.

“Obviously, the Andretti name has a huge history, in Formula 1, in various forms of motorsport, and I think would add a lot of value. So as long as it’s a team that helps build the sport, unlike some of the other entries that we’ve seen, over the years that have come and gone in year two or three, I think we can’t accept teams like that.”

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