Back in early February, Ford essentially shocked the world when it announced that it would be making a long-awaited return to Formula 1 racing as a power unit manufacturer for the Oracle Red Bull Racing team. This new pairing is, in fact, a true partnership, one that will benefit both entities, with The Blue Oval using that ultra-popular motorsport series to help develop its future electrified powertrains for road-going vehicles. Now, in an equally surprising move, Ford’s cross-town rival – GM – has announced that it has registered with the FIA to become a power unit manufacturer as well, as reported by GM Authority.
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GM is already testing and developing prototype power units in-house, but it also noted that it will be a while until one of those powertrains is actually used in an F1 racer – the 2028 season, in fact. Regardless, the automaker’s motivation behind making such a commitment to Formula 1 is essentially the same as Ford and many other power unit makers – it wants to use those efforts to help advance its electrification efforts, ICE engine efficiency, software, advanced control systems, and potential use of sustainable fuels.
GM also revealed that the FIA has approved Andretti Cadillac’s Expression of Interest application to race in the FIA Formula One World Championship, which is notable since it was the only one out of four applicants to receive this honor. Now, however, the automaker must receive approval from the Formula 1 itself before it can take the next step in that process.
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“We are thrilled that our new Andretti Cadillac F1 entry will be powered by a GM power unit,” said GM President Mark Reuss stated. “With our deep engineering and racing expertise, we’re confident we’ll develop a successful power unit for the series, and position Andretti Cadillac as a true works team. We will run with the very best, at the highest levels, with passion and integrity that will help elevate the sport for race fans around the world.”
We’ll have more on everything Ford’s competition is up to soon, so sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford motorsports news and 24/7 Ford news coverage.
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