Back in March the squad, who are backed by TWG Motorsports and General Motors (GM), received final approval to join the sport. Then, in August, it announced Finland’s Valtteri Bottas and Mexico’s Sergio Perez — both multiple race winners — as their drivers, beating the likes of Mick Schumacher and Felipe Drugovich to the highly sought-after openings.
Eastwood’s appointment heralds the next stage in the journey from boardroom to pitlane for GM, with the 30-year-old set to play a key role in providing data before — and during — Grand Prix weekends as well as testing new parts and car upgrades at the factories of various teams.
For the last two years, he supported the simulation efforts of the Mercedes-AMG Formula One team before choosing to conclude that partnership and join forces with Cadillac.
It has been kept somewhat under wraps… it is a very cool project to be involved in.
He is also a highly experienced and decorated driver and currently competes in America’s IMSA SportsCar Championship, the World Endurance Championship and the European Le Mans Series. In all three track-based competitions, he represents Corvette Racing — a sister company of Cadillac, with both owned by the Detroit-based General Motors.
“We had some discussions at the end of last year when it came to light that there was an entry on the table, and I got to work this year — it has been really cool so far,” said Eastwood.
“There’s loads to do and just so many unknowns as well, of course — and there is also so many staff coming in from different places and things but, already, it is an amazing group. It is good to finally get the news out that I have joined Cadillac Formula One team for the sim development.
Valtteri Bottas has already been unveiled as one of Cadillac’s drivers
“I have been doing it all year, but there has been a lot of news that has had to be released since then, so it has been kept somewhat under wraps. But yeah, it is a very cool project to be involved in and obviously starting a Formula One team from scratch is no mean feat.”
Despite being a newcomer to the Formula One grid, Eastwood is confident GM can quickly make its mark given the resources and levels of investment that is being pumped into the programme.
He added: “Everything seems to be moving at such a pace because five months ago when I was there, there were no race drivers. It is all pretty fast paced at the moment and, going forward, the expectation is we will be interacting with Sergio and Valtteri more and more.
“I already knew that GM is a great company to work for, so I am really looking forward to seeing how this project progresses — I think we know it is not going to be a case of fighting at the very front, straight out of the box, but the team definitely has all the qualities and resources to push its way to the front of the field over time.
“So yeah, like I said, it is nice to be there from the start and hopefully I can be there for years to come.”.