How Cadillac landed on Perez and Bottas | Racer

‘Formula 1 is a worldwide sport, but make no mistake, this is an American team, it will race under an American flag. “

Those were the words of Cadillac Formula 1 team head Graeme Lowdon in March, when the long-awaited 11th entry was finally approved and the newest team on the grid could finally talk with certainty.

It is an identity that Cadillac is extremely proud of, but it is also extremely realistic about the challenges with which it is confronted, because it seems to compete with 10 established, well-performing F1 teams as quickly as possible.

Experience has won when it comes to a part of the most important employees within the team – on top of Lowdon there is Executive Engineering Advisor Pat Symonds, Chief Operations Officer Rob White and technical director Nick Chester – and now the same can be said when it comes to a Rijline -Up that does not have an American flag.

In Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, Cadillac has protected a line-up with a combined 527 Grand Prix-Start and 16 victories between them. At the time of writing, only Ferrari (531 Starts, 113 victories) and Aston Martin (594 Starts, 32 victories) claim to have higher totals in both categories, while only Red Bull (65 victories) and McLaren (17 victories) can be added to the list in terms of more racing overlooks.

But if an American team is still completed the shift from the insistence of the original Andretti entry that there would be at least one American driver, because the immediate chances of Colton Herta fade without a guaranteed super permit, and other Indycar names did not win.

“I think in the case of Colton, the SUpright LcommendThere are no SE points, “explains TWG Motorsports and Cadillac F1 team CEO Dan Towriss.” But I really think what it is coming back is experience in Formula 1 that the day has worn.

“Despite the amount of experience we have in the team, everyone is new, everyone is working together for the first time. And so we think that the experience that these two drivers bring is really the most important thing.

“We are certainly thinking about, and it is important for us to ensure that there is a path for an American driver in Formula 1, and we will work on that. But I think that for this inaugural season, for what the team needs, and really what these drivers bring, this was the right combination for our team.”

The composition of the Cadillac F1 entry-with both TWG and GM Backing-gives it many tires to North American motorsport. On top of Indycar there are Imsa and Nascar associations, Plus WEC programs, so there is no shortage of knowledge of the driver. GM President Mark Reuss refers that it is central to his acceptance that of those currently available, Bottas and Perez stood out to ensure that the early years of the team have been set on the right track.

“These two drivers are really important for us because this experience of stage and victories between the two … something is that we greatly appreciate because I know first -hand that I am developing new vehicles and in particular in motorsport, motorsports, the [importance of the] Relationship of the director with the technical team and the engineers, “says Reuss.

“With all the tools in which we have invested heavily between TWG and General Motors – we have the tools, we have the people on board to develop these vehicles and now we have the drivers who have had enormous experience with the circuits of Formula 1.

“So I think this is a very important part of this and that feedback from the drivers experienced in the vehicle development itself, something is that, I think, a milestone in the history books here for Cadillac, because it comes in the big phase of Formula 1, which we have never done before, of course and as a fully working team.

“The dedication, the investment, the resources of people and now the drivers are a really good, winning combination. So we feel very good about what we are going to do here when we go the schedule in ’26.”

There are significant differences between the worlds of F1 and Indycar, but what was not brought up as a question from the position of Cadillac was the possibility for an American driver who is currently in Indycar to process the switch. It was more a case of the current situation that did not give an American option that could bring a guaranteed performance level above and outside that of the huge Bottas and Perez experienced.

“I think the cultures are certainly different, as we expect internationally versus more North -America/United States and Indycar,” says Reuss. “But anyway, what I have mentioned before, is what the day really wears.

“I think that the technical development of the team and the car and the powertrain with experienced people who have done these tracks can simulate and use tools to a certain extent, but it becomes very human in terms of their ability to stretch the limits of their ability with a car that they have trust.

“And the technical back and forth between the team and the driver is extremely important, especially if we look at the experience they have and the winning records they have.”

Away from Indycar names, Jak Crawford offers an American option that is approaching a super license and has ties with Aston Martin who exposed him to F1’s 2026 rules, but he still has to start a race. And, just like Crawford, Bottas – who was known for the availability of availability at the end of last year – is exposure to the new cars by his Mercedes role, which regularly held him in the paddock this year.

Perez was another case, after he had lost his Red Bull Drive at the end of 2024 and was not signed elsewhere. But this year Cadillac saw the struggle of the second director alongside Max Verstappen and was confident that the 35-year-old could rediscover his best form, especially after meetings that answered all questions regarding the motivation of Perez.

Towriss insists that it was a tough call between several drivers who were “hard to say no to”, regardless of nationality, but that the preferred couple became clear after a process involving several voices within the Cadillac setup.

“There were really a series of meetings within the team. Graeme had collected a group of advisors – it would include people like Pat Symonds and others with the team – and we started collecting a kind of file if you want, information about the drivers, to different combinations.

“And so it was really not a certain meeting, because I think that as time went on, things started to distil as a unanimous decision from that point of view.

“Mark and I had many meetings and really talking about Mark’s experience with drivers, the history of GM in Motorsports, I would say it was incredibly valuable. Insight into how General Motors looks at drivers for each of the programs in multiple series and not just how Formula 1 would look at it historically.

“So it was very interesting to put together all that information and perspective when it started to distil until what that choice looked like.

“And then I think that the final decision was finally on conversations between Mark and myself, while we took the information that was provided, and the recommendations that were brought forward, who tested a little more pressure, and I think we both walked away again and actually confirmed that these are the two boys, these are the two drivers to lead us in 2026.”

From the perspective of the American director, attention can now focus on how one of the talents can be drawn up by Cadillac to be in a better position to get into one of the racing chairs in future seasons. But before 2026, the chance of not signing one, but two, experienced racing winners turned out to be too attractive to reject.