Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) emigrated from Istrian Italy to Nazareth, Pennsylvania in 1955. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1965 and built a career spanning Formula One, IndyCar, NASCAR, and sports car racing. He won the 1978 Formula One World Drivers' Championship with Lotus, four IndyCar National Championship titles (1965, 1966, 1969, 1984), the 1969 Indianapolis 500, the 1967 Daytona 500, and three editions of the 12 Hours of Sebring.
Andretti's first direct experience as an entrant came in 1968, when DVL team owner Al Dean died and his estate was wound up per his wishes. The team's assets were sold to Andretti himself, who took over the operation and ran it under the name Andretti Racing Enterprises, retaining chief mechanic Clint Brawner. Andretti served as an owner-driver, combining the pressures of managing a team's logistics and finances with competing at the front of the USAC championship.
The arrangement proved difficult. Andretti lost the 1968 USAC title on the last race of the season despite holding a 304-point lead over Bobby Unser entering the finale at Riverside. Engine failure forced him to borrow first Joe Leonard's car (with failed brakes) and then Lloyd Ruby's car; because only his laps in Ruby's car counted, he received only 165 points instead of the expected 420, and Unser won the title by eleven points — the narrowest margin in USAC history. Unhappy with the dual burden of ownership and driving, and facing reduced sponsorship from Firestone, Andretti sold the team to Andy Granatelli's STP Corporation before the 1969 season. That year, under STP, Andretti won nine races including the Indianapolis 500 and his third national championship.
From 1982 onwards Andretti raced for Newman/Haas Racing in IndyCar, competing as a driver rather than an owner. His son Michael Andretti eventually founded the IndyCar team that became Andretti Global, one of the premier organisations in American open-wheel racing. Mario Andretti serves on the board of directors of Cadillac's Formula One programme from its debut in 2026 onwards, providing an ongoing connection to the top level of motorsport in an advisory and governance capacity.
Andretti's brief period as a team owner in 1968 illuminated the difficulties of combining full-time championship driving with team management at the highest level of American open-wheel racing. His decision to sell the operation to STP freed him to focus on driving, producing arguably the most dominant single season in USAC history the following year. His 111 career victories across major international circuits made him a figure whose influence extended far beyond any single role, and the Andretti family name has remained one of the most recognised in global motorsport for over six decades.