Cadillac Announces Driver Pairing For Debut F1 Season

Cadillac has now revealed who will be driving during its first year in F1 in 2026 after months of speculation.

Cadillac F1 Team concept | Cadillac Communications

Cadillac will enter Formula 1 next season as the long-awaited 11th team and join Haas as the second American squad on the grid.

The General Motors group is taking the opportunity to join F1 as new regulations are enforced having taken over the original planned entry which was under the Andretti Global name, with acceptance to the field only given after a revision to the entry was made.

While the operation is still in its relative infancy ahead of its debut season, key figures have already been announced like team principal Graeme Lowdon, who is experienced in leading a new team.

But the drivers have until now only been a source of speculation.

Cadillac chooses experience

Oct 20, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Oracle Red Bull Racing driver Sergio Perez (11) and Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber driver Valtteri Bottas (77) and Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu (24) wave to the fans from the back of a pickup truck during the driver’s parade before the 2024 Formula One US Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

In an announcement on Tuesday [August 26] Cadillac revealed its 2026 driver line-up to be Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.

The duo will bring over two decades of shared experience and race-winning pedigree in F1 to the team to help lift the project off the ground when the first wheels are turned in the January pre-season test.

Perez has sat on the sidelines this year having been dropped by Red Bull following a miserable end to his stint at the team based in Milton Keynes, England, though his stock has grown through absence given the struggles of Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda in the second car alongside Max Verstappen.

The Mexican won races for Red Bull and Racing Point and has been backed by former team principal Otmar Szafnauer to be a "good addition" upon his return.

Bottas has also been forced to watch from the garage having lost his Sauber seat at the end of the 2024 season, but has kept up his workload behind the wheel of an F1 car by becoming Mercedes' third driver and completing testing for the Silver Arrows and McLaren.

The Finn has 10 grand prix wins to his name and was alongside Lewis Hamilton with the German manufacturer during its dominant period at the end of the 2010s.

"I felt something different"

🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/eEklCP5NGH

— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) August 26, 2025

"From the moment I began speaking with the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, I felt something different – something ambitious but also grounded,” said Bottas.

“This isn’t just a racing project; it’s a long-term vision. It's not every day that you get a chance to be part of something being built from the ground up and helping shape it into something that truly belongs on the F1 grid.

“I’ve had the honor of working with some of the best teams in the world, and I can already see the same professionalism and hunger here. This is an iconic brand with a big legacy in American motorsport, and to be a part of the story as it enters the world stage of F1 is incredibly special for me. 

"I’m looking forward to representing the American spirit of racing on the greatest circuits in the world. I’d also like to thank Mercedes for their unwavering support and sportsmanship in facilitating such an exciting step."

Perez added: “Joining the Cadillac Formula 1 Team is an incredibly exciting new chapter in my career," Perez said. "From our first conversations, I could sense the passion and determination behind this project. It's an honor to be part of a building a team that can develop together so that, in time, we will fight at the very front. 

"Cadillac is a legendary name in American motorsport, and to help bring such a fantastic company to Formula 1 is a huge responsibility, one I’m confident of taking on.

"I’m proud to be part of such an ambitious and meaningful project from the very beginning. I’m really pleased to be part of such a dynamic line-up, and together I believe we can help shape this team into a real contender, the team of the Americas. We’re counting on support from across the continent – and we want to make everyone proud.”

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