Andretti-Cadillac are yet to submit their expression of interest in joining the Formula 1 grid to the FIA, one of the carmaker's top bosses has admitted.
Earlier this month it was announced that Michael Andretti had struck a deal with the General Motors Company. Adding the luxury Cadillac brand to Andretti Autosport's attempts to create a new F1 team would, the American hoped, add more weight to his pitch.
That announcement came just a few days after one from the FIA, as president Mohammed ben Sulayem revealed an 'Expressions of Interest' scheme. It provides a way for those interested in joining F1 to make an official pitch and prove their legitimacy as a prospective new operation.
The situation has sparked significant backlash from the existing teams, most of which are not keen on the idea of diluting their own profits with a new team. Reacting to that cold response, Andretti lashed out at "greedy" team bosses and accused them of being selfish.
Despite the furore – including a clash between teams and the FIA, who seem keen on adding new teams – it seems there is still a long way to go before a decision is made on whether a new team can join. In a new interview, Cadillac's global vice president Rory Harvey has revealed that they are yet to even submit their official bid.
"There's still a long way to go to be honest with you," he told GiveMeSport. "It's a difficult one to say exactly how it's going to play out – we haven't submitted our expression of interest yet. We've declared our intent, but then we have to go through the evaluation process.
"I read articles everyday that come out online, in terms of the thoughts of some people, and I try to disregard some of them because I guess the challenge for us is to do what we need to do in terms of making sure that we have a competitive entry."
Some critics of the Andretti-Cadillac deal have suggested that bringing the carmaker on board is little more than a 'badging' exercise. While Harvey freely admits the plan is to begin as an engine customer – they are believed to have a deal in place with Renault – he did not shut the door on Cadillac making their own power units in the future.
Asked if that could happen, he added: "We have a deal with an established power unit manufacturer and we believe that we bring a significant amount as well, whether it be fuel combustion technology, whether it be turbo performance, whether it be battery technology, etc.
"So we would work with a partner from that perspective to develop as strong a proposition as we could, but there is timing that comes into account here. So I'm not going to give you an answer as to what is going to happen exactly in the future because I think we need to see how things play out at this stage."
