A little more than one year previously at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Cadillac were at last given the green light as Formula One’s most recent entry for 2026. Constructing the squad from nothing has entailed a hectic work rate that the team principal, Graeme Lowdon, has likened to the Apollo program. As Formula One arrives on the Vegas strip this weekend, the team understand the deadline is approaching.
The Countdown to Melbourne
At the final race of the championship to be hosted in the US, with around 100 days to go before they take to the track for the inaugural time in Australia at the 2026 opener, the Cadillac F1 project have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a never-ending task, they are cognizant there will not be adequate time.
The technical director, Nick Chester, became part of the newly formed team in early 2023 soon after it was created, when the organization were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its center from that point and has a knowing grin when considering the journey.
“You can have a short period thinking back at what the team has achieved and say: ‘Incredible, isn’t this fantastic what we have built in less than three years,’” he says. “Then the very next instant you consider: ‘Well, we’ve still got quite a lot to do.’”
A Unique Opportunity
Chester enjoyed success at the Renault team in the driver Fernando Alonso's victorious years of 2005/2006 and was in command of technical development at the then-new Mercedes-Benz Formula E team, but no other project has truly matched the task of introducing the all-American Cadillac brand, a factory team sponsored by the parent company, GM, into Formula One.
“Building an grand prix team from nothing, when are you ever going to get a chance to do that?” he says. “It's unparalleled. In an well-set team you rarely get the possibility to alter cultural approach.”
With every day that goes by thoughts are sharper on the impending moment of truth in Australia and goals are being set realistically.
“It's reasonable to expect that any new team coming in is likely to start at the back but simply getting on to the grid will be an feat in itself,” the team principal commented earlier this year and while Nick Chester shared this view he felt the squad had a reputation to build as well.
“Our primary goal we want to show is that we should be there,” he says. “In order that we arrive and we function efficiently. We want to show that we are a serious contender doing the correct procedures on the race track. After we have demonstrated that we are a legitimate team, then we aim to demonstrate improvement subsequently.”
Driver Lineup and Team Building Drive
In late summer they contracted Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas as their pilots for 2026, a duo distinguished for their vast knowledge in competing at the sharp end in two championship-winning squads, the Red Bull team and Mercedes-AMG, and the Finnish driver reflected the attitude of combative optimism.
“Certainly, we have a realistic outlook,” he said. “We face a huge amount of work to do, and it will likely be most likely a difficult start, because it's the top level of motorsport. But our goal isn't to stay at the back. I am confident given this organization, with these individuals, these personnel, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to progress rapidly up to the pace and enjoy some success.”
To realize that ambition recruitment has been in overdrive, with staff now at in excess of 400 and scheduled to attain the objective of 600 rapidly. Complementing their present headquarters at the UK base, the organization are in the phase of finishing an main base at Fishers in Indianapolis and there is the General Motors facility in North Carolina, where they are developing the plant to build the new engine, planned for 2029 – for now they will operate with power from Ferrari – and the Toyota's wind tunnel in Germany. It is a sophisticated organisation, contrary to the trend in Formula One for greater centralisation, and has inspired the innovative team culture to which the CTO referred to.
Space Mission Blueprint
“It’s highly modelled on the NASA moon mission,” said the team principal just before the Silverstone race in July. “We are pragmatic, we recognize how challenging it is. The deadlines, are extremely compressed. OK, we’re not putting a man on the moon, but it can seem that way.”
So they have adopted, as opposed to the traditional management structure, a non-hierarchical approach comparable to that of Nasa’s, where there were a variety of Apollo teams all working on various components of the program in a different facilities.
“When you must follow a protocol where a challenge emerges and they escalate it to their manager, that manager communicates with a manager at a different location, it travels back down, it becomes inefficient,” explains the CTO. “Therefore we enable staff to handle things directly. Avoiding hierarchical consent for everything is much smoother and quicker.”
Upcoming Challenges
The efficacy of this agile strategy will be proven in the heat of competition in 2026 and there is a considerable amount on the line for the sport, too. Cadillac have taken on as their test driver the emerging American Colton Herta
