EXPLAINED: Everything you need to know about Cadillac’s 2026 entry into Formula 1

Eleven teams are set to line up on the grid for the 2026 Australian Grand Prix on March 8, with the Cadillac Formula 1 Team preparing to make their debut in the sport. Ahead of that, we take a look at everything you need to know about F1’s newest entry…

So, Cadillac are coming into F1 in 2026 are they?
They certainly are sunshine. The American outfit will become the 11th team on the Formula 1 grid in 2026, joining the sport just in time for a raft of new technical regulations to be introduced (you can find out more about those here). They are set to be officially known as the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, and backed by US car giant General Motors and TWG Motorsports.

I see. So another American team on the grid then, along with Haas?
You’ve summed it up to a nicety. As you say, it will mark the second American-registered team on the grid, joining Gene Haas’ outfit, who entered the sport a decade ago in 2016 – incidentally the last time an all-new F1 team joined the grid.

But hang on – Audi are joining the grid in 2026 and they’re new…
Well strictly speaking, they’ve grown out of the Sauber team, so they’re not ‘new’ new, if you know what I mean.

Sort of. Okay, so Cadillac are coming in as an ‘all-new’ team then. Bit of a commute to most of the races from America though, isn’t it?
Ah, well like Haas – who operate out of bases in the US, the UK and Italy – they’ve thought of that. Yes, Cadillac will be headquartered in the US – specifically in Fishers, a suburb of American motorsport haven Indianapolis.

But they also have a UK base which, like Aston Martin, is right next to Silverstone – and they’re also building a power unit facility near General Motors’ technical centre in Charlotte, North Carolina. But we’ll get to that in a bit…

I bet setting up an F1 team from scratch is no mean feat, right?
It’s no mean feat indeed – and to that end, they’ve got some experienced hands on the… tiller, is that the expression?

It’s a bit boaty, but I’ll allow it…
Thank you… they’ve got some experienced hands on the tiller. Former Marussia Sporting Director Graeme Lowdon is set to oversee the squad as Team Principal, while other key figures include former Renault man Nick Chester as Chief Technical Officer, and Pat Symonds – formerly of ‘Team Enstone’ (read Toleman/Benetton/Renault etc) and Formula 1 – as Executive Engineering Consultant.

Capital. And who have Cadillac chosen to pedal their first ever F1 cars? If it was me, I’d want drivers with a bit of experience…
Well, I’m sure Cadillac would thank you for your input. As it turns out, they happen to agree with you, and in August 2025 announced seasoned racers Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez as their line-up for 2026 and beyond – with both drivers signed on multi-year deals. That gives Cadillac a driver pairing with a combined total of 527 Grand Prix starts, 16 Grand Prix wins and 23 pole positions, with both drivers having spent 2025 on the sidelines.

Not too shabby. Didn’t they want an American driver though, being… well, American?
The team are making no bones about their Americany-ness, but opted not to let that override their driver line-up decision initially.

As TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss told us last August: “It's important to us to make sure there's a pathway for an American driver into Formula 1 and we'll be working on that. But I think for this inaugural season, for what the team needs, and… what [Perez and Bottas] bring, this was the right combination for our team."

So that means that for now, it’s Mexican Perez and Finnish Bottas at the wheel.

Worthy of note, though, is that IndyCar winner Colton Herta has been signed up as the team’s test driver, and has even opted to move from IndyCar to Formula 2 for 2026 as he seeks to make himself F1-ready in the future.

I shall watch his future progress with interest. Now you mentioned something earlier about power units. So they’ll be made by… General Motors?
Not yet. The current plan is for the team to become a full works outfit – as in making their own chassis and power unit – in the coming years, with the squad currently slated to have their own engine by 2029. Until then, they’ll have Ferrari power units (and gearboxes) in the back of their cars, along with Haas and Ferrari themselves.

Well this is all tremendously exciting. When can I see these Caddies in action then?
Don’t call them Caddies – you’re not Snoop Dogg. Cadillac are reportedly set for a shakedown of their car at some point in January, ahead of the 11 teams’ private test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain on January 26-30, before official testing happens in Bahrain on February 11-13 and 18-20.

Cadillac will also officially launch their livery during the 2026 Super Bowl on February 8 (we mentioned they were American, right?).

Meanwhile, they’ve already teased shots of Perez in the simulator, while Bottas began his first day as a Cadillac driver on December 9 2025, having wound up his duties as Mercedes’ reserve driver. His first task was getting a seat fit done, so that famous Finnish bottom should be nice and snug in the car come testing time…

Can we keep Valtteri Bottas’ fleshy parts out of this, please?
Sorry.

Bottom gags aside, shall we end on Cadillac’s targets for their first season in the sport?
Sure. Sensibly, Lowdon and the rest of the Cadillac outfit have kept their feet on the ground targets-wise. Speaking to us last March, Lowdon said of his goal for 2026 and the coming seasons: “It's very difficult to quantify what success can look like other than we just have to execute as well as we possibly can and gain respect from the other competitors. I think that's always the first target because, if we do that, then we know that we will be doing a good job.”

There’s no doubt that the road ahead for Cadillac is long and the learning curve will be steep. But with good people behind the scenes and talented drivers on the track, the squad are confident they can build something big in F1.

As Bottas himself said – while acknowledging that their “starting point could be tricky” – “the sky's the limit for the team… [Cadillac] is going to be here to stay for a long time in F1.”

That’s a rousing note to end on. So Cadillac in F1 – one of surely many things to be excited about for 2026…
You said it! And if you’re curious about some of the others, follow this link as Chris Medland talks new regulations, a potentially swirling morass of a drivers’ market and much more besides…