A little more than a full year ago at the Nevada Grand Prix, Cadillac were ultimately granted the green light as the world of Formula One's newest entry for the 2026 season. Constructing the squad from the ground up has entailed a frenetic operating tempo that the principal, Graeme Lowdon, has likened to the NASA lunar mission. As F1 arrives on the Vegas strip this weekend, Cadillac understand the deadline is approaching.
The Tight Timeline to Melbourne
At the season finale of the season to be hosted in the US, with approximately a hundred days to go before they take to the track for the maiden outing in Australia at the first race of 2026, Cadillac have come on in leaps and bounds but, in what must seem like a never-ending endeavor, they are cognizant there will not be enough hours in the day.
The chief technical officer, Nick Chester, came aboard the nascent project in March 2023 shortly after it was formed, when the squad were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its center ever since and enjoys a knowing grin when reflecting on the ride.
“You might get a brief moment thinking back at what you’ve done and say: ‘Incredible, what an achievement what we have built in less than three years,’” he says. “And then the next minute you think: ‘Yeah, we’ve still got quite a lot to do.’”
An Unprecedented Opportunity
Chester achieved victories at the Renault team in Fernando Alonso’s victorious campaigns of the mid-2000s and was in control of technical direction at the recently formed Mercedes electric racing team, but no other project has been quite like the task of launching the iconic American Cadillac name, a works entry sponsored by the parent company, General Motors, into F1.
“Creating an Formula One team from nothing, when will you ever have the possibility to do that?” he says. “It's unparalleled. In an established team you rarely get the possibility to change organizational mindset.”
With each passing day that passes minds are more focused on the impending decisive point in the Australian GP and expectations are being set realistically.
“One must presume that any incoming team entering the sport is going to be last but just making it to the starting line will be an feat in itself,” Lowdon commented this year and while Chester shared this view he thought the squad had a statement to make as well.
“The first thing we aim to demonstrate is that we belong on the grid,” Chester explains. “So that we show up and we perform competently. We seek to prove that we’re a proper team executing the correct procedures on the circuit. Once we prove that our credentials are solid, then we aim to demonstrate forward movement subsequently.”
Driver Lineup and Hiring Effort
In August they signed Sergio Pérez and Bottas as their drivers for 2026, a pair notable for their vast knowledge in operating at the leading positions in two top-tier teams, the Red Bull team and Mercedes-AMG, and the Finnish driver reflected the mood of determined optimism.
“Naturally, we have a realistic outlook,” he commented. “We face a massive task to do, and we expect almost certainly a difficult start, because this is Formula One. But we’re not there to stay at the back. I believe with this setup, with these individuals, this staff, it's entirely possible we shouldn’t be able to progress rapidly to the front and enjoy some success.”
To achieve that goal staff acquisition has been in overdrive, with personnel now reaching in excess of 400 and intended to hit the target of 600 rapidly. Alongside their existing facility at Silverstone, the squad are in the phase of finishing an main base at Fishers, Indiana in Indy and there is the GM plant in North Carolina, where they are building the center to produce the power unit, set for the 2029 season – until then they will run Ferrari power units – and the Toyota wind tunnel in Germany. It is a complex organization, contrary to the direction in F1 for increased consolidation, and has led to the innovative team culture to which Nick Chester alluded.
Apollo Inspiration
“It's closely based on the Apollo program,” remarked the team principal just before the British GP in the summer. “We have a clear-eyed view, we understand how challenging it is. The deadlines, they’re super, super, super short. OK, it's not a space expedition, but it can seem that way.”
So they have embraced, rather than the traditional management structure, a non-hierarchical approach comparable to that of the space agency's, where there were a range of specialist groups all working on various components of the project at a multiple sites.
“In a system where you follow a process where an issue arises and they report it to their supervisor, that manager communicates with a leader in another department, it is relayed back, it’s super slow,” explains Nick Chester. “Therefore we enable people to handle things directly. Avoiding managerial sign-off for everything is much smoother and quicker.”
The Future
The effectiveness of this agile approach will be evaluated in the heat of competition next season and there is a significant degree on the line for F1, too. The Cadillac team have recruited as their development driver the emerging American Colton Herta
