Alpine “will not say no” to Andretti-Cadillac’s F1 team plans

Alpine has explained why it has no plans to stand in the way of any potential new F1 team, despite the rest of the grid’s, um, mixed reaction to the news of Andretti and Cadillac’s joint bid last month.

The surprise announcement seemed to go down well with fans and it’s no secret that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is supportive, having called for formal expressions of interest ahead of an official application process at the start of the year.

However, some of the teams are worried that an eleventh (and potentially twelfth) rival wouldn’t bring any real value to a sport that is already seeing its popularity soar around the globe. It also hasn’t suffered the embarrassment of a relative newcomer going bust since Manor collapsed in 2017.

On which note, can you guess what else they’re concerned about? Yep: money. The smaller teams in particular don’t like the idea of a new competitor eating into their share of the prize money, and there’s a belief among some that the $200 million ‘anti-dilution’ fee - which any new team would have to pay to compensate the current grid for muscling in on their share of the pie - is far too cheap.

And while individual teams couldn’t veto Andretti-Cadillac’s bid if it was rubber-stamped by the FIA, F1 as the commercial rights holder could torpedo it if it wanted to.

Alpine finished fourth in the constructors’ championship last year, and can be thought of as the biggest of the Davids beneath the Goliaths that are Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes. Does it plan to fend off new competitors? “We will not say no,” said team principal Otmar Szafnauer when asked by TG. “If it’s good for the sport, I’m all for it.

“The real question is: ‘Is it better for the sport or isn’t it?’ To me, if you have 11 teams and 22 drivers instead of 20 and they’re all competitive, then it’s better for the fans. And if it’s better for the fans, it’s got to be better for the sport.”

The fact that parent company Renault has agreed in principle to supply an Andretti-Cadillac entry with engines - as confirmed by Alpine boss Laurent Rossi earlier this month - might have (well, definitely has) something to do with it. “Cadillac’s a big name in the auto industry, bigger in America than in Europe,” added Szafnauer. “And Andretti’s a big name in motorsport. So the combination of the two to come into Formula 1, I think from a naming perspective it’s great.”

Over to you: would a couple of extra cars inject more excitement into F1? Or is 20 plenty? Comments section, GO.