The arduous journey Cadillac undertook to secure an eventual Formula 1 entry has been extensively chronicled, yet the sheer scale of the task faced by the series’ first genuine new team in a decade is difficult to overestimate, as it rapidly expanded its workforce across its main UK base in Silverstone and its various facilities in the United States.
Understanding the significant challenge of competing against F1’s established teams, the squad, co-owned by Cadillac’s parent company General Motors, aims for a respectable showing in its debut year, a goal it has somewhat achieved. Valtteri Bottas retired early from the race due to a steering wheel malfunction, which the team attributes to factors beyond its control, but Sergio Perez successfully completed Cadillac’s inaugural F1 event.
In an exclusive interview with Autosport, team principal Graeme Lowdon expressed satisfaction with the team’s first appearance, noting that the issues plaguing some of the long-standing teams illustrate just how intricate the 2026 regulations have been to master.
“We’ve observed once more, it’s not straightforward. A number of participants did not even commence the race,” Lowdon commented. “For Valtteri, it was truly unfortunate because there was clearly a steering wheel problem, and that’s incredibly frustrating, as we do not manufacture steering wheels. With Checo, we opted to switch from a single-pitstop strategy to two, simply because there was no threat from behind at that stage, so it made sense.”
“It was an exceptionally efficient stop, genuinely. I’m not entirely certain of the precise stop time, but it was in the low two-second range. So, that was very positive for the crew as well. Consequently, yes, there’s considerable confidence moving forward into the next race weekend, and I believe we have a foundation there that we can genuinely build upon.”
Executing its initial competitive pit stops was just one component of Cadillac’s steep developmental process. The Friday practice session in Melbourne marked the first occasion Cadillac had simultaneously operated two vehicles, while the race distances covered by Perez on Sunday were, by far, the team’s most extensive.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Sergio Perez, Cadillac Racing
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images
“We gathered an abundance of additional data,” Lowdon stated. “It would have been absolutely ideal to have both vehicles return, primarily for the benefit of both drivers, but also for the team and the wealth of information we could acquire. However, again, for an inaugural Grand Prix, merely bringing one of these incredibly intricate machines to completion is a remarkable outcome.”
In anticipation of its F1 debut, Lowdon had heavily invested in the team’s designated “race ready” initiative, an exceptionally realistic mock-up program simulating 2025 grands prix from its Silverstone and Charlotte facilities, adhering to a fictitious race weekend schedule. Activities ranged from making real-time strategic decisions and practicing communication protocols to even simulating driver unavailability for engineers at specific junctures due to media and promotional obligations.
Reflecting on that program now, Lowdon is even more convinced it represented the correct approach. “Indeed, I would go further and say that without it, it would have been extraordinarily difficult to even attempt to finish,” he elaborated. “There was a multitude of things occurring. When we encountered the steering wheel issues on Valtteri’s car, it was roughly at the same moment we were contemplating a pit stop, so there was a great deal for everyone to process and many decisions to be made. And had we not conducted all those race simulations, it would have been considerably, considerably harder.
“The impressive aspect is that when you hear a voice over the intercom, you have no way of knowing if its source is Charlotte or Silverstone or the back office here. This is precisely how we envision it. It’s simply about everyone collaborating seamlessly.”
However, as proud as Cadillac and GM are about successfully navigating their initial challenge, they did not enter F1 merely to fill the grid. After a brief period of F1 exhilaration that lasted a mere 72 hours over the Melbourne weekend, the primary focus has now shifted to enhancing performance significantly and ensuring both vehicles cross the finish line.
A confident Perez articulated this sentiment on Thursday in China, acknowledging that being three to four seconds off the pace and concluding three laps down will rapidly become unsustainable. Cadillac finalized its aerodynamic package for Australia relatively early, but the team is optimistic about its capacity to introduce upgrades at a consistent pace.
Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac Racing
Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images
“Let’s state that the initial objective has been accomplished. And now the entire focus is on progressively narrowing that gap in each successive race,” the returning Mexican F1 driver commented. “This vehicle was finalized a long time ago and possesses a very fundamental design. They were required to approve it quite early, so we understood that the beginning would inherently be challenging.”
“But I believe we possess all the necessary resources and highly skilled personnel, so I would be quite astonished if we couldn’t progress over the coming months.”
At this nascent stage of the entirely new 2026 regulations, Cadillac will not be the sole team to uncover abundant opportunities for aerodynamic development. However, Lowdon promised a clear “strategic blueprint” for enhancing the performance of the Ferrari-engined MAC-26 over the forthcoming months.
“Obviously, our next aim is to ensure both vehicles complete the race, and then begin boosting our speed,” he concluded. “I believe a strategy for achieving this is discernible. It’s not an immediate accomplishment, as naturally, every other team is also evolving. Yet, it is something I truly feel we will reach, and we will progressively narrow the gap.”
