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<\/p>\nIt\u2019s one of the automotive world\u2019s oldest rivalries, but 2026 will be the first time Ford and General Motors do battle on motorsport\u2019s biggest stage.<\/p>\n
The American auto behemoths have joined Formula 1 with the advent of sweeping new regulations.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the first time Ford has been involved in F1 since it sold the Jaguar team to Red Bull ahead of the 2005 season.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the first time in history any General Motors brand has entered the Formula 1 world championship.<\/p>\n
Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every practice, qualifying session and race in the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship\u2122 LIVE in 4K. New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n They do so with very different approaches.<\/p>\n Ford is working with Red Bull on an engine program to power the team it once owned. Principal sponsor and technical partner to Red Bull Powertrains, the Ford badge appears on the engine covers of the Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls entries.<\/p>\n General Motors, on the other hand, is financially backing a new team operated by TWG Motorsport, based in the UK. It will also build its own power unit from scratch, which it expects to debut in 2029. Until then the team will race with customer Ferrari motors.<\/p>\n TWG is headed by American business Dan Towriss, who was the first to fire the first shots on the new front of this age-old rivalry.<\/p>\n \u201cOne is a marketing deal with very minimal impact, while GM is an equity owner [in the Cadillac team],\u201d he said, per the Athletic last year. \u201c[GM are] deeply embedded from an engineering standpoint and they were involved from day one.<\/p>\n \u201cThose two deals couldn\u2019t be more different.\u201d<\/p>\n If he was looking for a response, Ford Racing general manager Will Ford had one ready for him.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat sounds more like a marketing ploy: what we\u2019re doing with our engineers embedded with the Red Bull team and a team of engineers in Dearborn supporting the program, or Cadillac racing a Ferrari engine?\u201d he told <\/a>Racer<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s table stakes for us. We would never go into a sport and race another company\u2019s engine. So I think it\u2019s pretty clear which one\u2019s more of a marketing effort.<\/p>\n \u201cBring it on [the rivalry]. Absolutely. I mean, we compete against GM every single day. So, bring it to the greatest showcase of motorsport.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s where we expect to fight them, and we\u2019re going to beat them there too.\u201d<\/p>\n Hamilton sets fastest lap at F1 testing | 01:09<\/p>\n FIRST BLOWS IN TESTING<\/p>\n The war of words turned physical last week with the first pre-season test of the year \u2014 the first time the new cars took to the same track under this set of rules.<\/p>\n Of the American rivals, there was a clear winner.<\/p>\n Red Bull Racing, with Ford on its engine cover, enjoyed three consistent and largely uninterrupted days of running on its way to 304 laps for the week. Those laps were supplemented by a further 319 tours completed by Racing Bulls with the same Ford-supported power unit.<\/p>\n Cadillac, on the other hand, had its baptism of fire.<\/p>\n It managed just 164 laps, the lowest of any team to complete three full days. On no day did it complete more than 66 laps.<\/p>\n Barcelona test, mileage by team<\/p>\n 1. Red Bull Racing: 304 laps (1415.7 kilometres)<\/p>\n 2. Cadillac-Ferrari: 164 laps (763.7 kilometres)<\/p>\n The Red Bull Powertrains motor, for what it\u2019s worth, was in the ballpark with the established manufacturers Mercedes and Ferrari when broken down by team.<\/p>\n Barcelona test, mileage by power unit by team<\/p>\n 1. Mercedes: 380.3 laps per team (1771.2 kilometres)<\/p>\n 2. Ferrari: 331.7 laps per team (1544.6 kilometres)<\/p>\n 3. Red Bull Powertrains: 311.5 laps per team (1450.7 kilometres)<\/p>\n 4. Audi: 243.0 laps per team (1131.7 kilometres)<\/p>\n 5. Honda: 66.0 laps per team (307.4 kilometres)<\/p>\n Given the Ferrari motor ran reliably for the works team and fellow customer Haas, Cadillac\u2019s problems all stemmed from the chassis side of the package.<\/p>\n Cadillac didn\u2019t resile from that assessment \u2014 in fact it was braced for it.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve steadily worked through all the usual niggles that you find with a brand-new car,\u201d team boss Graeme Lowdon said, having described the week as one full of \u201cdebugging\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to remember it\u2019s only the fourth day of this team running their Formula 1 car. But every day we\u2019re getting more streamlined, the procedures are working well, people are working extremely well together.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is still a lot of work to do, but that\u2019s the same for all teams.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m really happy with the way things have gone.\u201d<\/p>\n Valtteri Bottas, coming directly from his role as a Mercedes reserve driver last year and after 12 years racing in Formula 1, said the week had laid bare just how much work the team still has to do to be competitive.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m proud of everyone working so hard and being here with the car,\u201d he said. \u201cBut also the first takeaway is that we still have a long way to go. We still have lots of problems to solve and a bit of a mountain to climb.<\/p>\n \u201cBut we are getting there, step by step. Each run we\u2019re getting better and more together as a team, each run we are solving issues and going forward, so that\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n Feeney FASTEST in Red Bull’s F1 car?! | 08:37<\/p>\n CADILLAC CHALLENGE REGARDLESS<\/p>\n But this was always going to be the case. Notwithstanding the challenge of building a power unit for the first time, as Red Bull Powertrains has done with Ford, setting up a brand-new team from scratch is an underrated challenge.<\/p>\n Audi, for example, has bought the Sauber team to get its place on the grid, though it has also built its own power unit \u2014 though, then again, you\u2019d expect the German automotive and motorsport giant to be able to pull that off.<\/p>\n Some might draw comparisons to Haas\u2019s reasonably competitive 2016 debut, but at that time the American-owned team was able to buy a significant percentage of its car from Ferrari, while it used \u2014 and still uses \u2014 Dallara to design its chassis. Rules for purchased parts have been tightened since, preventing a prospective team from taking the same Haas approach.<\/p>\n On top of that, Cadillac\u2019s start to life in Formula 1 was rough and protracted. It was originally set up as Andretti Global as a bid by Michael Andretti to join the grid. He gained FIA approval but was knocked back by F1 on commercial grounds, though the American former racer did himself few favours with the high-profile sideline politicking that put much of the paddock off-side.<\/p>\n The team was bought by TWG Global, headed by Towriss, a long-time Andretti sponsor. Andretti himself was shuffled aside. General Motors had already agreed to partner Andretti and build an engine, but it now holds a stake in the team bearing the name of its Cadillac brand.<\/p>\n It was enough to convince F1 to reverse its rejection \u2014 but it took until last March to do so, giving the team less than a year to build itself up before this year\u2019s first grand prix.<\/p>\n Though the team kept growing even after its initial rejection, efforts were redoubled once its entry was assured.<\/p>\n Just 10 months later, the team had to have a fully functional Formula 1 car on the track in testing. After becoming the first team of the season to complete a private shakedown, it hit the track in Barcelona last Monday morning, the first day of the first test.<\/p>\n To understand the scale of the challenge, consider that Williams, a decades-old team, didn\u2019t even turn up at all. Even Aston Martin, working in state-of-the-art facilities \u2014 albeit some that didn\u2019t come fully online until April \u2014 got only one full day of running.<\/p>\n Cadillac had problems, but it made it through the week respectably \u2014 a big tick for its organisational performance.<\/p>\n But car performance remains a question mark. Most expect Cadillac to be racing at the back of the field, potentially joined by Audi.<\/p>\n Lowdon was unwilling to identify what would make Cadillac\u2019s first season a success.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very, very difficult to set absolute objectives,\u201d he told Autosport. \u201cBut we constantly analyse every single thing that we do.<\/p>\n \u201cI think this is a team game, and the key thing about team games is to instil absolute honesty within the team with honest feedback.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we make mistakes somewhere, these mistakes can happen, and the key thing is to have that absolute honesty.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re all in the team. We\u2019re all in together. We help each other. That\u2019s how the best teams work. And we\u2019re trying to build a really, really good team, so we will be self-critical, but with the right reasons at heart.\u201c<\/p>\n Norris confident of going back-to-back | 00:51<\/p>\n SO DOES FORD GET THE LAST LAUGH?<\/p>\n Ford seems primed to land the early blows in this rivalry.<\/p>\n Red Bull Racing expressed initial surprise at how well its power unit had performed at the first week of testing, albeit with no real performance running undertaken. It\u2019s also one of two manufacturers, alongside Mercedes, to have found the compression ratio loophole despite its rookie status as an engine builder.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew it would be a very special moment to be here for the first time with RB22 with our own PU, so on Monday there was a special atmosphere in the garage,\u201d team boss Laurent Mekies said.<\/p>\n \u201cIn terms of what we were expecting from the power unit in these first three days, I can only stress how proud we are of everyone back at base who delivered us this PU.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course it is very early days, and nothing is perfect, but we have started to learn already.\u201d<\/p>\n But not only is it too early for a victory lap, it\u2019s also debatable how much of the victory lap Ford should be allowed to complete.<\/p>\n While the Blue Oval has certainly contributed to Red Bull\u2019s first power unit, it\u2019s unclear how significant of a contribution it is.<\/p>\n The partnership was initially presented as focusing on the hybrid elements of the motor, where Ford has expertise from its road car business. Ford Racing global director Mark Rushbrook has since suggested that remit has expanded considerably, including to the internal combustion engine, some of which is being manufactured in the United States.<\/p>\n Red Bull has also talked about Ford\u2019s assistance in recruiting the right personnel with the right expertise \u2014 critical given Red Bull Powertrains was set up from scratch \u2014 and some Ford engineers are embedded in Milton Keynes.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s also true to say the Red Bull power unit was well advanced before Ford became involved, to the point that the first prototype had already been developed.<\/p>\n Ford involvement, then, appears valuably additive rather than fundamental.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I first got involved, Ford weren\u2019t in the picture,\u201d Red Bull Powertrains technical director Ben Hodgkinson said, per The Race.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that they wanted to get involved was a real vote of confidence in where we\u2019d got to actually, because they could see what we\u2019d done in not much more than 12 months, and wanted to be part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n It gives this new front in the GM-Ford rivalry a unique twist. Both are involved but in very different ways, and Ford\u2019s partnership with a major constructor while GM sets up its own team means it\u2019s highly unlikely they\u2019ll be battling each other directly on track for many years.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s the funny thing about rivalries. None of that really matters.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sure that rivalry will continue. We\u2019ve seen many times in Formula 1, the fans actually like to see some rivalry, as long as it doesn\u2019t go too far, obviously,\u201d Lowdon told <\/a>Autosport<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s just another layer of interest in Formula 1.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s one of the automotive world\u2019s oldest rivalries, but 2026 will be the first time Ford and General…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":459268,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[236216,236224,2095,236233,236232,236225,64,63,937,220217,132224,81129,84696,236228,236213,236227,236226,236231,220230,236219,236236,2057,817,236221,813,816,59975,17670,841,236218,236210,236217,63274,234673,82966,236230,2041,2067,3583,236214,18923,236215,233881,12022,14444,236234,236238,59978,236229,236211,10134,193093,3595,2020,236237,57266,85,233906,236223,236220,236235,3586,2614,236212,29467,236222,16198],"class_list":["post-459267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-absolute-honesty","tag-absolute-objectives","tag-america","tag-american-auto-behemoths","tag-american-business","tag-american-rivals","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-barcelona","tag-ben-hodgkinson","tag-car-performance","tag-chassis-side","tag-combustion-engine","tag-commercial-grounds","tag-compression-ratio-loophole","tag-dan-towriss","tag-engine-builder","tag-engine-covers","tag-engine-program","tag-engineering-standpoint","tag-equity-owner","tag-europe","tag-f1","tag-ford-involvement","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-general-motors-company","tag-graeme-lowdon","tag-grand-prix","tag-high-profile-sideline-politicking","tag-iconic-motorsport-rivalry","tag-key-thing","tag-mark-rushbrook","tag-mercedes-confident","tag-michael-andretti","tag-motorsport-giant","tag-north-america","tag-northern-america","tag-northern-europe","tag-paddock-off-side","tag-power-unit","tag-principal-sponsor","tag-promising-testing-session","tag-province-of-barcelona","tag-question-mark","tag-real-performance","tag-real-vote","tag-reserve-driver","tag-road-car-business","tag-rookie-status","tag-single-day","tag-single-thing","tag-southern-europe","tag-spain","tag-special-atmosphere","tag-special-moment","tag-sports","tag-supercars-amp-formula","tag-team-games","tag-team-means","tag-teams-work","tag-united-kingdom","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-victory-lap","tag-way-things","tag-will-ford","tag-works-team"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459267","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=459267"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459267\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/459268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=459267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=459267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=459267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}