(Las Vegas) U.S. manufacturer General Motors said Tuesday it has registered with Formula 1’s umbrella organization to become an engine supplier starting in 2028, providing a major boost to Michael Andretti, who is trying to establish his own team in the premier series of motorsport.
“We are very pleased to announce that the new Andretti Cadillac F1 team will be powered by a GM engine,” said GM President Mark Reuss. Thanks to our engineers and our racing expertise, we are very confident that we can develop an engine for this series, which will position Andretti Cadillac among the leaders.
“We will test with the best, at the highest levels, with passion and integrity in order to raise the level of the discipline for racing fans everywhere,” he added.
The announcement comes ahead of the F1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas, where three senior GM executives plan to travel to support Andretti Global’s bid to join F1.
In January, GM announced a partnership with Andretti Global, through its Cadillac arm, in Andretti’s submission of an F1 membership application. GM had no plans at the time to develop its own F1 engine division, and it indicated that its efforts would be combined with those of an existing engine manufacturer.
The FIA approved Andretti’s membership application in July, but it has still not been accepted by F1. Among the criticisms leveled at GM at the time was the fact that the American manufacturer did not want to enter F1, and that it instead wanted to limit itself to supporting Andretti – and allow it to come to an agreement with another engine manufacturer already existing, which would also accept that the Cadillac badge be applied to the engine block.
GM has now changed its tune and decided to develop its own engine. If Andretti receives approval from F1, then he will have to enter into an agreement with another engine manufacturer until 2028.
GM has already started developing and testing a prototype of its technology, and has indicated that the development of an F1 engine will enable it to make progress in various sectors such as electrification, hybrid technology, renewable fuels, more efficient internal combustion engines, more sophisticated tuning and more efficient computer systems.
F1 will adopt new engine rules from 2026 which will emphasize renewable fuels and the electrification of its engines. Six manufacturers have already signed an agreement to supply engines to F1 from 2026, including newcomer Audi, which has entered into a partnership with Sauber. Ford also plans to make a return to F1 with the three-time reigning world champion Red Bull team. Honda also wants to distribute engines in F1 from 2026.
Of the seven membership applications submitted to the FIA, Andretti was the only one that met all the criteria needed to increase the grid from 10 to 11 teams. And since his car already exists, Andretti hoped to be able to participate in the world championship from 2025.
