Renault willing to resume Andretti F1 talks

Andretti had a pre-contract agreement with Renault, but it lapsed in the summer as the process of gaining an entry dragged on for longer than either party had anticipated.

The FIA gave the new project the official go-ahead in October, with a final decision then passed to the F1 organisation and its CEO Stefano Domenicali.

Since then the situation has changed with General Motors revaling that it is stepping up from a simple partnership role and intends to develop its own power unit for 2027 or 2028.

Despite Andretti strengthening its ties with a rival manufacturer, Famin says that Renault is still willing to supply the new team in the interim seasons before the Cadillac power unit is ready.

If the team meets its stated target of starting in 2025 it would contest one season with the current specification power unit before the new regulations come into force in 2026.

While Andretti clearly has a cut-off point for an entry decision from F1 in order to be ready to race in 2025, Renault also needs sufficient notice in order to ramp up production and be in a position to supply a second team.

“We are talking to Andretti and to General Motors and we are happy to talk to them,” said Famin when asked about the situation by Motorsport.com.

“If they have an entry, we are happy to resume the talks. For the time being it’s a bit on standby, and not due to us, it’s because the length of the process is much, much, much longer than expected.

“The FIA took much more time to answer than they said at the beginning, now the ball is on the F1 side. If they have an entry, we are happy to discuss [a deal] with Andretti.

“What I said last time is that we had a pre-contract, the pre-contract has expired, then factually right now we don’t have any commitment or any legal commitment with them. But we’re happy to talk to them and to see what we can do together.

“If they have an entry it’s because they will have demonstrated that they will bring a lot of added value to F1, and that the value of the championship and the teams will not be diluted due to that.”