“Afraid of Losing Money”: Toto Wolff & Co. Under Fire for ‘Adverse Reaction’ to F1 Gamechanger

The 2023 off-season is keeping us on our toes and Andretti Global’s entry into F1 has been a huge contributor of news. Their relentless efforts to become a part of the premier class have kept Americans hooked. However, after consistently being shooed away from the idea of fielding an additional team, the American racing conglomerate has found some much-needed support.

Andretti made strides in their F1 entry when they joined hands with General Motors for their Cadillac badged Formula 1 entry bid. This partnership was seen as a positive step and gave the Americans financial credibility to break the Formula 1 entry barrier. In fact, the fans have already started to picture the American team on the grid whilst pitching the driver they would want to see race for their team.

However, as usual, the progress made by Andretti witnessed some backlash. The backlash that Andretti Global has been facing every time they made a step in the right direction. However, the FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem tweeted in support of the hopeful Americans.

“It is surprising that there has been some adverse reaction to the Cadillac and Andretti news. The FIA has accepted the entries of smaller, successful organisations in recent years. We should be encouraging prospective F1 entries from global manufacturers like GM and thoroughbred races like Andretti and others. Interest from teams in grown markets adds diversity and broadens F1’s appeal,” read the Tweet.

Read More: Andretti-Cadillac Bid Gets Competition as Another Team Looks to Join the F1 Circus: “We Have a Pre-Agreement”

The fans reacted to Ben Sulayem’s tweet by showing their support for the Andretti brand while blaming greed.

Fans react to FIA president’s tweet blaming F1 teams for greed for blocking new entrants

The ‘adverse reaction’ is put subtly by the FIA president but the fans are making educated assumptions about where these reactions are coming from.

The fans pointed out Toto Wolff as one of the flag bearers for the negative reaction to the entry bid.

Some fans also pointed out the team’s unwillingness of sharing the market share and “losing money” because of new entrants. On the other hand, one fan pointed out an American team will only increase the overall interest income generated by the sport.

The fans are blaming the F1 team bosses for the negative reactions to the Andretti-Cadillac news. However, only time will reveal if the team bosses can actually block a new team’s entry.

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