General Motors Gears Up For Potential F1 Entry In 2026: Report

U.S. automaker General Motors GM is reportedly on the brink of securing a spot on the Formula One grid by 2026.

What Happened: The Detroit-based automaker could join the Formula One grid as early as 2026 with its own team, The Athletic reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Andretti Global put forward a bid that was rejected by F1 as of the end of January. The proposal involved the use of Renault’s engines in the short term and GM’s engines later.

“We would look differently on an application for the entry of a team into the 2028 Championship with a GM power unit, either as a GM works team or as a GM customer team designing all allowable components in-house,” F1 said while rejecting the bid.

The bid, however, has now gained momentum owing to GM’s involvement, The Athletic reported. An announcement from F1 regarding General Motors’ bid as it takes over the Andretti project is anticipated in the near future, it added.

Why It’s Important: There are currently 10 Formula One teams with Haas F1 the only listed American team. The teams do not have a say in whether an 11th team gets added.

However, according to The Athletic, the teams are not excited about the possibility owing to a dilution in prize money. However, the stance is softening towards GM, the report noted.

GM is the biggest automaker in the U.S. The company delivered 2.6 million vehicles in the U.S. in 2023, higher than Ford who sold nearly 2 million vehicles.

As of the end of Q3 2024, GM had already delivered over 1.9 million vehicles in the U.S. including combustion engine vehicles and electric vehicles.

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