Is Andretti Autosport Coming to NASCAR?

What’s Happening?

The Andretti name is synonymous with racing. The family pioneered motorsports in America, racing across the gambit from INDYCAR to Formula One and even to NASCAR. While the family is most famous for their time in INDYCAR and, specifically, chasing the Indy 500 dream, Andretti Autosport, a team owned by former INDYCAR driver, Michael Andretti, are reportedly in talks to enter the world of NASCAR team ownership.

You Need To Know:

• The Andretti family is no stranger to NASCAR. The patriarch of the family, Mario Andretti, has won every big race there is to win in the world of motorsports from the Indy 500 to the 1978 Formula One World Championship to even the Daytona 500. The longest tenured Andretti who drove in NASCAR is the late cousin of Michael, John Andretti. He spent most of his NASCAR career in Richard Petty’s No. 43 STP and Cheerios sponsored car and even drove a No. 43 blue STP INDYCAR for the King one year in the Indy 500 in a mind-shattering cross-over. More recently, Marco Andretti has started to make a name for himself on the stockcar scene, making a one-off start in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in Big Machine Racing’s No. 48 in the 2022 Roval race. He also captured the 2022 championship in Tony Stewart’s SRX Series.
• This isn’t the first time Andretti Autosport have looked to expand beyond the world of INDYCAR. Most recently, they have joined forces with General Motors in an attempt to gain FIA approval for an expansion team in F1. Whether or not that endeavor ever comes to fruition remains to be seen, but one could only imagine that it would be much simpler to crack into NASCAR. All they would need to do is…purchase a charter…
• This news garnered mixed reactions from fans. Several view it skeptically while some speculate that they could be brining in a new OEM with them (perhaps Honda?). Only time will tell if this actually becomes a reality.

The Main Characters

The main characters in this story are obviously the famous Andretti family. Several of them have dipped their toes in the NASCAR racing world. The most prominent of those being patriarch, Mario Andretti when he won the 1967 Daytona 500.

Perhaps the key player in this story, however, is principle owner of Andretti Autosport, Michael Andretti. In the interview below, he explains his attempt to get his team into Formula One.

The driver with the longest-tenure behind the wheel of a stockcar is none other than John Andretti. He won 2 races in his NASCAR Cup Series and would turn his final laps in a stockcar in 2010. Sadly, John passed away in 2020. R.I.P.

Marco made his NASCAR debut at the Roval last year. Despite getting involved in an accident, he seemed to be in good spirits in his post-race interview and even stated that he’d give NASCAR another go. He currently drives part-time in INDYCAR for his father’s Andretti Autosport. Could he be the driver tapped to lead this new team into the sport? Hmm…

In The Stands

Casey Foran thinks Andretti Autosport should keep his team in INDYCAR and focus on getting it to a competitive level before attempting to enter other forms of motorsports.

Jeremy dreams of them ushering in another OEM like Honda. Perchance to dream…

MNSportsMisery states that Andretti has been looking to get into NASCAR for years and has never pulled the trigger. They’re not so easily convinced that this will ever become a reality.

Wargiven27 points out that BOTH Andretti Autosport AND JR Motorsports would already be in NASCAR’s top series if charters didn’t exist.

Tommy Mattix echoes that he’s not buying in just yet. Michael Andretti has been saying this for quite a while now…

Bradan Hart would love to see an Andretti Autosport expansion team in NASCAR!

Dual thinks that if anyone was going to attempt to field cars in all three of the world’s biggest racing series, Andretti would be the ideal candidate.

Daily Downforce readers! Let me know what you think! Do you think Andretti will ever spill over into to NASCAR or even Formula One? Or do you think their talents are best suited where they are–in INDYCAR? Let us know!