Ben Sulayem open to 12th F1 team after Cadillac approved as 11th

Dubai — Formula One could expand to 12 teams after General Motors’ brand Cadillac was accepted as the 11th from 2026, according to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem.

F1 has always had provision for 12 in the rules, but there was strong opposition from commercial rights holder Liberty Media and existing teams to going beyond 10 before a deal was reached.

“Why not?” Ben Sulayem said at Sunday’s Qatar Grand Prix when asked if he would like to see the final slot filled.

“It’s about doing the right thing. So why do we have an option of 12 if we are going to say no, no, no? With me it is very clear it is a win for everyone with the 11th team.”

Cadillac last week announced an agreement in principle with F1 while General Motors registered with the governing FIA as a power unit manufacturer to become a full works outfit by the end of the decade.

F1 said in January it doubted the bid, originally presented as Andretti, would be competitive or add value, but relented after the original approach was repositioned as manufacturer-led and Michael Andretti stepped back.

An investigation opened by the US House of Representatives judiciary committee into possible “anticompetitive conduct” also changed the landscape.

Ben Sulayem hailed the agreement as very important for the sport and said he had been “sent to hell” and back after the FIA approved the Andretti bid in 2023 and passed it to F1 for consideration.

Ben Sulayem said the US inquiry into the sport had an effect on the outcome. “I had a meeting with them and I was questioned. I have nothing to hide. I’m an elected president, based on governance and democracy and transparency. So we did what the FIA did. I am proud of what the team did,” he said.

Ben Sulayem said the bid was always about quality rather than numbers, getting General Motors fully on-board as a manufacturer and not about Andretti. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali agreed with that.

“He said ‘we need an OEM [original equipment manufacturer], not only an extra team’,” the Emirati said. “So they disappeared for a few months and they came back with an OEM.”

Ben Sulayem said F1 then raised the power unit as an issue. “So they came up with a power unit. They ticked the boxes there. We could no longer say no to them.”

Andretti was the sole applicant sent forward for commercial discussions with F1 from four that made the second stage of the process in 2023.

Failed applications included New Zealand-based Rodin Cars, which had committed to reserving one seat for a female driver, and a Hitech team backed by Kazakh billionaire businessman Vladimir Kim.

Hitech boss Oliver Oakes is principal of the Renault-owned Alpine F1 team.

Reuters