He has made himself clear that he does not believe Grosjean is a good teammate and he will never give an inch to Grosjean on the track. Rossi on Monday declined to elaborate on the situation. When it was over, Grosjean said he still felt Rossi is “an absolute idiot. He had a heated conversation with Rossi’s father in the open paddock and then a postrace meeting with his drivers. The melee brought about high tensions and lowered finishing results.”Īndretti was openly seething as his cars wrecked one another. It was so ugly this is how Andretti Autosport summarized Sunday in its postrace news release: “With the drop of the green, drivers worked to advance in the field before a round of incidents amongst teammates cost valuable track positions. Herta, in 15th, was the highest-finishing Andretti car. Ind圜ar called avoidable contact penalties on both Grosjean and Rossi. Grosjean wrecked Colton Herta and challenged team orders to block traffic for Rossi. Rossi wrecked Grosjean and rookie Devlin DeFrancesco. And while Mid-Ohio proved his organization packs all the action needed for a full “Drive to Survive” storyline, it couldn’t have been the look Andretti wants scrutinized. It’s up to Andretti to prove his value to these gatekeepers of the club he so desperately wants to join. At Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Monday, the transportation hub of NASCAR featured F1 driver Lando Norris in an ad for Tumi in the main shopping artery.Īdding two cars to put the Andretti name on the grid is viewed by the majority of F1 teams as nothing but a dilution to their guaranteed earnings. They don’t care about returning the Andretti name to F1 and most are already signing mega-million deals with North American-based companies. Most of the current F1 teams think Andretti is delusional. The smart play for Andretti would have been to squelch any tension on the roster immediately.Īndretti has been working overtime trying to persuade F1 to expand its grid for a two-car effort from “Andretti Global.” A true American team, he’s argued, would bring new sponsorship wealth to a series rapidly growing throughout North America. He is leaving for Arrow McLaren SP and Andretti already has signed Kyle Kirkwood to replace him. Rossi long ago decided this seventh season would be his last with Andretti, the owner who gambled on the Californian when he washed out of F1. That’s OK because Grosjean doesn’t like Rossi, either.Īnd it’s on Andretti to manage the situation and prevent his organization from embarrassing itself at a 60-year-old relic of a racetrack located in the middle of Ohio. He was a featured driver on F1’s behind-the-scenes Netflix docudrama and an entire episode revolves around the near-fatal 2020 fire that ended his F1 career and brought him to the United States to race Ind圜ar. Grosjean is new to the team - he replaced popular Andretti stalwart Ryan Hunter-Reay - and Andretti needs “The Phoenix” and his star power in the expansive Andretti multiseries lineup.Īnd Grosjean is legitimately a star. The meltdown of his flagship Ind圜ar team at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course can be his Netflix audition tape.Īndretti Autosport has been unsteady all season, the first with Romain Grosjean of F1 and “Drive to Survive” fame and last with Alexander Rossi, winner of the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 and Ind圜ar’s least amused driver. LEXINGTON, Ohio - Michael Andretti wants Formula One to believe he should be the team waving the American flag in the world’s most popular motorsport series.
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