F1 News: Greedy Vasseur still pushes back on expansion

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur has urged caution for F1 as bosses negotiate the new Concorde Agreement for 2026 with expansion to Allow Andretti-Cadillac.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

This, although the cost caps implemented by Liberty Media and the FIA, have made all the teams financially sound. It is all a lame excuse because they feel threatened that Andretti-Cadillac will steal some of their American sponsor money away.

The greedy European F1 Team owners only love America for the sponsor money they get, but have no desire to let another American team onto the grid.

Teams are reluctant to allow an 11th squad due to the fact that their slices of the prize pot pie would reduce to only an 11th instead of a tenth, with Andretti arguing it can help grow the overall pot to offset what it costs the other teams.

“It doesn’t matter the format, the organization and the rules. At the end of the day, if you are 11 teams, you are more exposed than if you are 10,” Vasseur explained.

“When you are in a positive situation and the business is going up, I think everybody is positive and optimistic, but I’m not sure that it will stay like this forever.

“We have to really pay attention. On one hand, we are moving to increase the costs at every single meeting. We put inflation [into the cost cap] we change the index for the inflation blah, blah, blah, and we increase the CapEx.

“And now we want to dilute more the incomes,” said Vasseur.

“It’s not easy also to run a business and to do forecasts when you have this kind of change so often and honestly we are not learning from the past and this is a big issue.”

Williams boss James Vowles also waded in, with him being particularly against a new team, for the time being, as the team navigate a tough financial situation, with losses in the past couple of years over well over $10 million per year.

“It’s not that there’s no room for an 11th team, it’s just we have to be financially stable to do so,” he said.

“I appreciate we’re increasing things but we are getting ourselves towards financial stability for the first time in forever, really. Let’s get to that point and see where we are.

“So it’s not actually against an 11th team whatsoever at all, and I think Concorde should reflect that. Let’s grow at a point where we can grow. I’m not sure that’s today.”