Mario Andretti warns against major changes in Formula One

Mario Andretti says he still enjoys watching Formula One. Photo by LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC

Past F1 champion and American racing legend says Mercedes' dominance is a good thing

One the eve of planned massive changes to the speed and look of the cars in Formula One, 75-year-old Mario Andretti is warning the series against going overboard as it looks to the future. 

 

"Formula One is a great product," Andretti, the 1978 F1 champion, told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport. "It keeps its integrity because of the technology. That's the trademark.

 

"(The technology) is why the fans love Formula One. Motorsport in general is expensive, and sometimes (F1) goes too far, so every now and then the sport needs to adapt. But I say adapt, not do things differently just for the sake of change. No racing series is perfect. There is no magic key, so please don't try to reinvent the wheel. That would be the worst thing they could do. It's exactly the mistake IndyCar made. They betrayed their roots and introduced things that do not fit with the series."

 

Some, however, believe the racing is better elsewhere than in F1, such as in IndyCar, where Andretti's grandson Marco is now a race winner.

 

Andretti's son Michael, now an IndyCar team owner, raced in Formula One in 1993.

 

When asked if F1 has something to learn in that area from IndyCar, Mario Andretti said, "It's the opposite. Everyone is talking about Mercedes' dominance and that it is wrecking the sport, but I think it's produced some great stories. Now everyone is watching Ferrari to see if they can close the gap.

 

"The Grands Prix in Hungary and Singapore showed that Mercedes can no longer afford to make the slightest mistake, and as a fan I love that."

Read More

Mario Andretti American race–car driver

Mario Andretti, in full Mario Gabriel Andretti (born February 28, 1940, Montona, Italy) Italian-born American automobile-racing driver who drove stock cars, U.S. championship cars, and Formula One cars.

Mario and his twin brother, Aldo, studied automobile mechanics, frequented racing-car garages, and participated in a race-driving training program in Italy. In 1955 the family came to the United States and settled in Nazareth, Pennsylvania; Mario became a U.S. citizen in 1964. By 1958 the brothers were racing stock cars. After several serious crashes, Aldo gave up racing in 1969. In the early 1960s Mario raced sprint and midget cars and in 1964 began racing in the championship-car division of the United States Automobile Club (USAC); he won USAC championships in 1965–66 and 1969. He also won the Daytona 500 stock-car race (1967) and the sports-car Grand Prix of Endurance race at Sebring, Florida (1967, 1970).

Andretti won the Indianapolis 500 race in 1969 with a then-record speed of 156.867 miles per hour (252.11 km/hr). His apparent victory in the 1981 race was ultimately given to Bobby Unser (Andretti was penalized one lap for passing cars during a yellow flag). Andretti was the second American driver to win the Formula One world driving championship in 1978 (Phil Hill was the first, in 1961). He retired from competition in 1994. In 1999 a panel of experts in a tie vote named Andretti and A.J. Foyt the best drivers of the century. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2000. Andretti’s sons, Jeff and Michael, also became professional race-car drivers.

Read More