(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – ARCA driver Marco Andretti looks out of the garage before a practice run for an ARCA Mendards Series auto race Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara, file)
(AP) Marco Andretti said Wednesday he is retiring from racing, a decision that likely means the “Andretti Curse” at the Indianapolis 500 will never end.
The 38-year-old grandson of Mario Andretti announced on social media he will not attempt to enter the Indianapolis 500 next season and will instead turn his attention to his daughter, business ventures outside of racing, and a memoir in process called “Defending the Dynasty.”
Next year’s Indianapolis 500 will not have an Andretti in the field for the first time since 2005.
“I have had some really fun times behind the wheel in a lot of different types of racing cars — a lot of great memories as well, mostly at the Indy 500,” Marco Andretti wrote in his announcement, noting his start this year was the 20th of his career, good enough for 12th all-time.
“I am very much at peace with the next chapter in my life after dedicating three decades to the sport,” he added.
Marco Andretti also reflected on the Indy 500, his performances there and when he and his father battled for the lead in the closing laps of the 2006 race.
Marco Andretti was an IndyCar rookie, his father, Michael, came out of retirement to race against him, and Marco’s late pass of Michael should have been enough for the victory. Sam Hornish Jr. ended up chasing down Marco Andretti and the curse that dates to 1970 — the year after Mario Andretti gave the family their only Indy 500 win — continued.
“I am proud of my overall stats at the Indy 500. I had six very legitimate shots at victory with Andretti Autosport and ended up with 20% top-3 finishes at the Speedway,” Marco Andretti wrote. “It feels accomplishing to me to be able to retire having more podium finishes than my father Michael and the same as my grandfather Mario at the biggest race in the world.”
He added to his Indy 500 memories nearly being bumped from the field in 2011 and winning the pole in 2020.
“That is what the Indianapolis 500 produces: extremes on both ends. That is why I love and appreciate it so much,” he wrote.
Marco Andretti won two times over 253 IndyCar starts spanning 20 years. He debuted at the age of 19 driving for his father’s team, which is now known as Andretti Global but Michael Andretti was bought out of the ownership group at the end of last season.
Marco Andretti scaled back in 2021 to run only the Indianapolis 500 as he dabbled in NASCAR and other racing series. With Michael Andretti no longer an official part of the team, new owner Dan Towriss is under no obligation to enter Marco Andretti at Indy.
Marco Andretti’s final Indy 500 will go down as one of his worst — he crashed on the fourth lap as both Mario and Michael Andretti dropped their heads at another Indy disaster.
Despite the heartbreak at Indianapolis, the Andretti name is one of the most globally respected in racing. Mario Andretti won the 1978 Formula 1 championship, IndyCar titles in 1965, 1966, 1969 and 1984, and the 1967 Daytona 500 in NASCAR.
Mario Andretti is the only driver to win Indy, Daytona and an F1 championship. He is the only driver to win IndyCar races in four different decades and his 52 career victories rank third on IndyCar’s all-time list.
Michael Andretti ranks fourth all-time with 42 wins in IndyCar, just never at Indianapolis. He won the 500 as a team owner five different times. He won one title, was runner-up in the standings five times and ran 13 of the 16 races in the 1993 F1 season.
Marco Andretti only began trying other racing series after he stepped away from full-time IndyCar competition. The pressure on him to live up to his last name was enormous, especially at Indianapolis.
He reflected on his two decades in IndyCar as “competing at the top level of North American motorsport is and has been an honor for me, even in the tough times.”
“That is where I can look back and say I have made my best progress in life as a man,” he said. “Learning to navigate very difficult dynamics at times, and others doubting me, made me realize that my opinion of myself is the one that should matter the most.”
