F1 Team Bosses Under Scrutiny as US Justice Tightens Grip
Oct.31 - Four men under the gaze of the United States government could ultimately lead to Andretti-Cadillac being welcomed onto the Formula 1 grid after all.
It is well known that, after F1 owner Liberty Media blocked Andretti's FIA-approved bid to become the sport's eleventh team, anti-competition authorities in the US have been looking into the matter.
Ralf Bach, a respected journalist for f1-insider.com, said four well-known F1 figures have been singled out by US authorities in particular. They are Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll, Red Bull's Christian Horner, and F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
Eurosport Italia claims the situation has even brought Domenicali's contract renewal talks to "a standstill".
As for the full aforementioned quartet, Bach revealed: "All four arrived at the US GP in Austin with their own lawyers." He said they did that because "officials from the US justice authorities" were also on site at the Circuit of The Americas venue in Texas earlier this month.
"According to our information, (the officials) insisted on interviews via video conference in the near future and are said to have made it unmistakably clear that false statements would have drastic consequences," Bach continued.
"There is apparently evidence in the form of a WhatsApp group that proves the illegal agreement" to lock Andretti out of Formula 1 for financial reasons, he added.
Separate to the US investigations, European authorities are also eyeing competition law breaches by Liberty Media-run Formula 1. Belgian politician Pascal Arimont told Het Belang van Limburg newspaper that he wants the European Commission to "protect consumers and ensure fair competition".
Fellow European parliamentarian Christine Anderson then followed suit with an official request for an inquiry into F1, stating that the "rejection of Andretti's entry by the Formula One Group despite FIA approval could reveal a fundamental conflict of interest".
She said existing teams colluding with F1 to block Andretti "could significantly distort competition in the European motorsport industry".
Curiously, Michael Andretti stepped back from his own Andretti Global organisation just weeks ago, perhaps paving another potential path into F1.
As for journalist Bach, he thinks Liberty Media owner John Malone is indeed trying to "limit the damage" of all the fallout from having blocked Andretti's entry.
"Insiders are convinced that a deal will be made with Andretti, allowing them to enter the sport and at least appease the notoriously uncompromising investigators from the Justice Department," the German wrote.
He also links the departure of Liberty's chief F1 lawyer Sacha Woodward Hill last month with the Andretti affair, describing her as a potential "scapegoat".
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There was no valid reason to keep Andretti out other than to protect their own financial interests.
That is anti competition.
Threaten the teams/ individuals with big penalties they will fold and let Andretti in.
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