Michael Andretti was tipped for success when he made his Formula 1 debut for McLaren in 1993. However he endured a difficult year and left before the season was over.
The son of 1978 world champion Mario Andretti could have made his start in F1 much earlier. Having made a successful start in America’s competitive CART IndyCar series, where his father also raced, Michael Andretti had the opportunity to enter F1 in 1986.It came about when the Haas team found itself in need of a substitute for the injured Patrick Tambay for the American round of the championship in Detroit. However the FIA refused to grant Andretti a superlicence, and the drive went to Eddie Cheever instead.
The second-generation driver continued to enjoy success in IndyCar, claiming the championship with Newman/Haas in 1991. F1 teams had begun to show interest, including his father’s former team Ferrari, but McLaren signed him instead for 1993.
It was a difficult time for a newcomer to arrive at the team, as star driver Ayrton Senna only confirmed his participation in the season late in the day. Having enjoyed years of success with Honda, McLaren now used customer Ford Cosworth engines, and faced a challenge to be competitive.
Andretti suffered a series of crashes early in the season, including a spectacular shunt with Gerhard Berger at the start of the Brazilian Grand Prix. Though he struggled to match Senna, he showed promise as the season went on, and claimed a podium finish at Monza. However that proved his final start for the team, and he was replaced by Mika Hakkinen.
He returned to America where he continued to win races first as a driver and, later, as the owner of his own team. After retiring from driving, Andretti spread his team beyond IndyCar into Formula E and other categories.
He was keen to expand into F1, and explored deal to buy Force India and Sauber, but was unsuccessful. He therefore submitted a bid to enter as a new team, which won the support of the FIA in October 2023, but was turned down by FOM at the start of the following year.
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