How Department of Justice helped General Motors stake claim for Formula One grid place

The sight of swathes of empty seats in the grandstands during qualifying here in Las Vegas suggests Formula One’s newest race, now in its second year, is yet to fully convince punters.

You will not hear many kind words about the Sin City grand prix from those involved in the sport either; exhausted at the end of the longest season in Formula One history, and now working nights while trying to fight off jetlag during the days due to crazy session timings, patience is wearing thin at the start of a final triple-header.

But one thing is for sure. Formula One’s footprint on this side of the Atlantic is growing. And it is about to get even bigger.

General Motors’ prospective addition to the 2026 Formula One grid as an 11th team, badged as Cadillac, is “imminent”, at least according to McLaren’s American CEO Zak Brown, who says he has seen executives from the Detroit manufacturer walking about the paddock in Vegas with “big smiles on their faces”.

If true – and The Telegraph has spoken to people involved in the nascent team who say they are not counting their chickens but are “optimistic” – it marks a stunning turn of events after a bid that was rejected earlier this year when submitted under the banner of American motorsport team Andretti.

On that occasion, the bid was accepted by the FIA but turned down by the sport itself, partly due to pressure from teams who felt Andretti would dilute their share of the profits by more than they would grow them.

There are various reasons for the volte face. Firstly, the departures of Michael Andretti – son of former F1 world champion Mario Andretti – on the one side, and Greg Maffei, until last week the CEO of Formula One’s owner Liberty Media, on the other. The relationship between the Andrettis and Liberty had become severely strained, with key figures in the sport feeling Michael was far too pushy in his approach. Removing those two from the equation appears to have greased the wheels of the deal significantly.

Secondly, and perhaps more significantly, the Department of Justice in the United States began to take an interest in Andretti’s rejected application earlier this year. In August, Liberty was forced to admit it was actually under investigation by the DOJ on antitrust grounds. The prospect of going before the US Congress to explain why it was impossible to accept an 11th team which would add to the growth of the sport on this side of the Atlantic – something F1 is openly enthusiastic about – was bound to sharpen minds. The re-election of Donald Trump may have helped too.

Thirdly, the rebranding of the deal as a GM-backed one, rather than Andretti, with GM eventually to supply powertrains themselves further down the line (they would have to be a customer team initially but talks are understood to have taken place already between them and Ferrari/Mercedes, with Honda obliged to provide engines if all else fails since they supply the fewest teams currently).

Either way, it appears it is now all systems go. Which is just as well, because the team ploughed on from the start, even after having their bid rejected in February, convinced they would eventually be accepted. Around 270 people are already working on the project, on both sides of the Atlantic.

“I kind of know what I’m hearing on the grapevine,” Brown told Sky Sports F1 in the Vegas paddock on Friday. “We’ve not been officially told anything but we partner with GM with our IndyCar team, so I’ve seen them here and they seem to have big smiles on their faces.

“So I believe an announcement is probably imminent and it will be exciting to have yet another manufacturer alongside Audi joining our sport [also in 2026].”

With an American team in Haas already in the sport, three US races now on the rota (Austin, Miami and Las Vegas), Ford joining as a partner of Red Bull in 2026, and now a proper OEM (original equipment manufacturer) potentially joining, all we need now is a competitive American driver and we really will have a full house in Las Vegas.