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\u2019s newest entry\u2026<\/p>\n
So, Cadillac are coming into F1 in 2026 are they? I see. So another American team on the grid then, along with Haas? But hang on \u2013 Audi are joining the grid<\/a> in 2026 and they\u2019re new\u2026 Sort of. Okay, so Cadillac are coming in as an \u2018all-new\u2019 team then. Bit of a commute to most of the races from America though, isn\u2019t it? But they also have a UK base which, like Aston Martin, is right next to Silverstone \u2013 and they\u2019re also building a power unit facility near General Motors\u2019 technical centre in Charlotte, North Carolina. But we\u2019ll get to that in a bit\u2026<\/p>\n I bet setting up an F1 team from scratch is no mean feat, right? It\u2019s a bit boaty, but I\u2019ll allow it\u2026 Capital. And who have Cadillac chosen to pedal their first ever F1 cars? If it was me, I\u2019d want drivers with a bit of experience\u2026 Not too shabby. Didn\u2019t they want an American driver though, being\u2026 well, American? As TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss told us<\/a> last August: \u201cIt’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\u2026 what [Perez and Bottas] bring, this was the right combination for our team.”<\/p>\n So that means that for now, it\u2019s Mexican Perez and Finnish Bottas at the wheel.<\/p>\n Worthy of note, though, is that IndyCar winner Colton Herta<\/a> has been signed up as the team\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n I shall watch his future progress with interest. Now you mentioned something earlier about power units. So they\u2019ll be made by\u2026 General Motors? Well this is all tremendously exciting. When can I see these Caddies in action then? Cadillac will also officially launch their livery<\/a> during the 2026 Super Bowl on February 8 (we mentioned they were American, right?).<\/p>\n Meanwhile, they\u2019ve already teased shots of Perez in the simulator<\/a>, while Bottas began his first day as a Cadillac driver<\/a> on December 9 2025, having wound up his duties as Mercedes\u2019 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\u2026<\/p>\n Can we keep Valtteri Bottas\u2019 fleshy parts out of this, please? Bottom gags aside, shall we end on Cadillac\u2019s targets for their first season in the sport? There\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n As Bottas himself said<\/a> \u2013 while acknowledging that their \u201cstarting point could be tricky\u201d \u2013 \u201cthe sky’s the limit for the team\u2026 [Cadillac] is going to be here to stay for a long time in F1.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s a rousing note to end on. So Cadillac in F1 \u2013 one of surely many things to be excited about for 2026\u2026
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<\/a>). They are set to be officially known as the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, and backed by US car giant General Motors and TWG Motorsports.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve summed it up to a nicety. As you say, it will mark the second American-registered team on the grid, joining Gene Haas\u2019 outfit, who entered the sport a decade ago in 2016 \u2013 incidentally the last time an all-new F1 team joined the grid.<\/p>\n
Well strictly speaking, they\u2019ve grown out of the Sauber team, so they\u2019re not \u2018new\u2019 new, if you know what I mean.<\/p>\n
Ah, well like Haas \u2013 who operate out of bases in the US, the UK and Italy \u2013 they\u2019ve thought of that. Yes, Cadillac will be headquartered in the US \u2013 specifically in Fishers, a suburb of American motorsport haven Indianapolis.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s no mean feat indeed \u2013 and to that end, they\u2019ve got some experienced hands on the\u2026 tiller, is that the expression?<\/p>\n
Thank you\u2026 they\u2019ve 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 \u2013 formerly of \u2018Team Enstone\u2019 (read Toleman\/Benetton\/Renault etc) and Formula 1 \u2013 as Executive Engineering Consultant.<\/p>\n
Well, I\u2019m 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<\/a> Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez as their line-up for 2026 and beyond \u2013 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.<\/p>\n
The team are making no bones about their Americany-ness, but opted not to let that override their driver line-up decision initially.<\/p>\n
Not yet. The current plan is for the team to become a full works outfit \u2013 as in making their own chassis and power unit \u2013 in the coming years, with the squad currently slated to have their own engine by 2029. Until then, they\u2019ll have Ferrari power units (and gearboxes) in the back of their cars, along with Haas and Ferrari themselves.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t call them Caddies \u2013 you\u2019re not Snoop Dogg. Cadillac are reportedly set for a shakedown of their car at some point in January, ahead of the 11 teams\u2019 private test<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n
Sorry.<\/p>\n
Sure. Sensibly, Lowdon and the rest of the Cadillac outfit have kept their feet on the ground targets-wise. Speaking to us last March<\/a>, Lowdon said of his goal for 2026 and the coming seasons: \u201cIt’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.\u201d<\/p>\n
You said it! And if you\u2019re curious about some of the others, follow this link<\/a> as Chris Medland talks new regulations, a potentially swirling morass of a drivers\u2019 market and much more besides\u2026<\/p>\n