For his big start in Formula 1, Cadillac, brand of the General Motors Group, decided to bet on the experience. The American manufacturer will integrate the F1 Cenakel in 2026 as an eleventh stable on the grid and will count on two veteran pilots.
On Tuesday 26 August the signatures of Valteri Bottas and Sergio Perez were formalized. The Finn will be 36 years old on August 28, while the Mexican will celebrate 36one Birthday on January 26, 2026. The two, the former pilots of Mercedes and Red Bull – where they have long played the roles of second pilot behind the Sterren Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen – accumulate 527 departure in F1.
Bottas won ten times, including successes in Russia, in 2017, in Australia and the United States, in 2019, or the last in Turkey, in 2021. Perez was six times: the first time, in 2020, during the Bahrain Grand Prix, before he shines in Monaco, in Monaco, in 2022, in 2022 and in 2022.
The two new teammates have each finished in second place in the World Pilot Championship. It was in 2019 and in 2020 for Valteri Bottas, for Hamilton every time. Sergio Perez was arranged in second place in 2023, defeated by Verstappen.
“The ideal combination”
“We believe that their experience, their leadership and their technical expertise match exactly what we needJustified than Towriss, CEO of the Cadillac Stable. This is the ideal combination, the right pilots at the right time, and we are very touched by the confidence they give us. »»
It was Cadillac’s chief director, the British Graeme Lowdon, who led the selection process, reducing three or four the number of credible candidates, starting with a list of twelve interested profiles.
Sergio Perez was without a steering wheel because Red Bull had not renewed it at the end of the 2024 season. Valteri Bottas is still used by Mercedes as a reserve pilot. But the last season of the Finnish in F1 had been tough at Saube’s, stable for which he had not scored points in 2024.
Apart from their unmistakable experience, the two pilots have other advantages. Perez is supported by many and rich sponsors. “The Mexican market is very important for General MotorsMark Reuss, CEO of General Motors, not. We sell many cars in Mexico and the fans, there are very enthusiastic. These are secondary benefits. »»
Bottas is a very good communicator, appreciated by fans on social networks, where he likes to play his sympathetic personality and his false cheap look. This Tuesday he organized himself on his Instagram account with a mounting that represents him in costume, surfing, a beer in one hand and the American flag in the other.
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