During the recent Miami Grand Prix weekend, Mario Andretti and Greg Maffei, CEO of Liberty Media, the owner of Formula 1, had a heated exchange at a private reception over Andretti Global's bid to join the sport. According to sources familiar with the incident, the clash took place at an invitation-only breakfast reception at the Palm Club.

Mario Andretti, a former F1 world champion and patriarch of the Andretti racing family, recounted the incident in an interview with NBC News. He mentioned that the confrontation happened on a Saturday when Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali asked him about his recent visit to Washington. Andretti explained that he had been invited by lawmakers to speak outside the Capitol, urging the sport to accept Andretti Global's application to become F1's 11th team.

As Andretti was explaining this to Domenicali, Greg Maffei interrupted, stating, "Mario, I want to tell you that I will do everything in my power to see that Michael never enters Formula 1." This remark referred to Michael Andretti, Mario's son, who is the chairman and CEO of Andretti Global, spearheading the bid to enter F1. The exchange came just days after Mario Andretti joined lawmakers on Capitol Hill, where members of Congress accused F1 of anti-competitive practices by rejecting Andretti’s application.

Andretti expressed his shock and disbelief at Maffei's words, describing the incident as a personal affront. "I could not believe that," he said. "That one really floored me. ... We’re talking about business. I didn’t know it was something so personal. That was really — oh, my goodness. I could not believe it. It was just like a bullet through my heart."

Maffei and Liberty Media declined to comment on the incident. However, a source close to Liberty Media, speaking on condition of anonymity, provided a different account. According to this source, Andretti approached Maffei at the breakfast to discuss the application, and Maffei informed Andretti that it had been rejected for valid business reasons.

In January, Formula 1 issued a statement explaining the rejection of Andretti’s bid, citing that an 11th team would not inherently add value to the Championship. The statement emphasized that a new entrant would need to be competitive to bring significant value, which they believed Andretti Global could not achieve.

The situation has escalated recently, with the House Judiciary Committee launching an inquiry and a group of influential senators calling for the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate alleged anti-competitive practices by F1 aimed at protecting predominantly European teams from U.S. competition. Andretti clarified that he did not initiate contact with lawmakers; they reached out to him following a Red Bull F1 showrun near the Capitol.

Andretti maintains that Andretti Global has fulfilled all the requirements to join the F1 grid, noting that the FIA approved the application before it was blocked by the sport’s commercial entities. He remains hopeful for a resolution that will allow Andretti Global to compete in F1 within the next two years.

“We’re bringing something of value. It’s a big investment in the sport that we love or sport that’s our job and our passion," Andretti said. "It’s a long-term commitment. We’ve done everything that needs to be accomplished, needs to be done to earn a spot in Formula 1. What else do you want us to do?”