Ferrari has Formula One in its DNA, says CEO after Cadillac supply deal
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From left: McLaren's Lando Norris, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc on the podium at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
PHOTO: AFP
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NEW YORK – Ferrari chief executive officer Benedetto Vigna said the luxury sportscar maker was “very proud” of a deal to supply engines and gearboxes to a new Cadillac Formula One team, in a multi-year agreement from 2026 that the company announced earlier on Dec 10.
“We are very glad of this selection, and this makes us proud. Our company’s purpose is very simple. We would audaciously define the limit of possible, and we are redefining also the limits of what is possible in F1,” he said at the Reuters Next conference in New York.
“In our DNA is racing. We have been present in this sport, which is now becoming entertainment, since the beginning.
“Also, we have a sense of responsibility because the success of these other teams, it also depends on our engine. So we will not forget this day. December 2024 is a good one.”
Vigna, who took over as Ferrari chief in 2021, reiterated on Dec 10 that the company would present its first fully electric car in the fourth quarter of 2025.
As for Formula One, the agreement with Cadillac is subject to final approval of the entry.
A supply will become available in 2026 due to Sauber – who have been using Ferrari engines – becoming the Audi factory team in what will be the start of a new engine era for the sport.
Ferrari said the agreement with Andretti Formula Racing was subject to written confirmation from the governing FIA and Formula One that the entry for 2026 had been accepted and approved.
The Liberty Media-owned sport announced in November an agreement in principle for the General Motors-backed Cadillac team to become an 11th entry. General Motors has also registered with the FIA as a power unit manufacturer to become a full works outfit by the end of the decade.
Mario Andretti, the last United States world champion in 1978, will serve as a director on the team’s board.
General Motors and partners TWG Global have agreed to pay an anti-dilution fee, split between the 10 existing teams, of US$450 million (S$605 million) to secure the entry, according to F1 sources.
Ferrari also provide engines to its own works team and US-owned Haas. REUTERS
