FIA chief reveals 'DREAM' for American F1 team and driver

F1 in America

FIA chief reveals 'DREAM' for American F1 team and driver

Mohammed Ben Sulayem admitted his wishes for a US team on the grid

Chris Deeley

Sunday 14 January 2024 02:27

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has admitted that his 'dream' is to have a full American team competing in Formula 1 in the near future.

The best chance of that happening currently looks like the Andretti bid for an 11th team on the grid, with Andretti Global and General Motors looking to use the Cadillac brand in F1.

The proposed team has been approved by the FIA, but the Formula One Group still have to approve the motion to add an 11th team to the grid - something a number of team principals and owners have cautioned against, on the grounds that they'd risk giving up 1/10th of their revenue.

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Ben Sulayem also admitted that he'd love to have a Chinese team involved in the sport, tapping into one of the biggest markets on the planet.

There are currently three US races on the F1 calendar

Michael Andretti has been leading the charge for an 11th, American, team in F1

Logan Sargeant is the only American participant in F1 at the moment

Ben Sulayem: My dream is a US team

The 62-year-old told Motorsport-Magazin: "If you ask me what my goal or dream is, I'll say: A full US team with one driver and a full China team with one driver. Then I would speak of global. And then I would say that my mission is on the right track.

Ben Sulayem's desire for a driver from each of the countries representing their 'home' teams may be one of the biggest sticking points, with Logan Sargeant and Zhou Guanyu the only US and Chinese drivers currently on the grid.

Neither had particularly successful 2023 seasons, both beaten in the standings by their team-mate - with only Kevin Magnussen between the pair at the very bottom of the table for all drivers who completed the full season.

Formula 1 FIA Cadillac Mohammed Ben Sulayem