A little more than a full year in the past at the Vegas Grand Prix, the Cadillac racing team were ultimately granted the green light as the world of Formula One's most recent entrant for 2026. Establishing the squad from the ground up has involved a hectic pace of work that the team principal, Graeme Lowdon, has equated to the Apollo program. As the sport descends on the Vegas strip this weekend, Cadillac know the deadline is approaching.
The Race Against Time to Australia
At the final race of the season to be held in the United States, with approximately a hundred days to go before they take to the track for the first time in Melbourne at the first race of 2026, the Cadillac F1 project have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a monumental endeavor, they are conscious there will not be sufficient time.
The CTO, Nick Chester, became part of the embryonic project in early 2023 soon after it was created, when the squad were without even an official entry. He has been at its heart ever since and has a wry smile when reflecting on the ride.
“You can have a short period thinking back at what you have accomplished and say: ‘Incredible, what an achievement what the team has created in less than three years,’” Chester states. “And then the very next instant you realize: ‘Yes, we’ve still got a significant amount to do.’”
A Unique Challenge
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 electric racing team, but no other project has truly matched the task of bringing the quintessentially American Cadillac name, a works entry supported by the parent company, GM, into Formula One.
“Creating an F1 team from nothing, how often do you get the opportunity to do that?” he says. “It's unparalleled. In an existing team you rarely get the possibility to change team culture.”
With each passing day that passes focus are more focused on the approaching moment of truth in the Australian GP and expectations are being managed.
“One must presume that a brand-new squad joining the grid is going to be last but merely participating will be an accomplishment in itself,” Graeme Lowdon commented this year and while the CTO agreed with this sentiment he thought the organization had a statement to make as well.
“The initial objective we intend to prove is that we belong on the grid,” Chester explains. “In order that we turn up and we function efficiently. We want to show that we are a serious contender performing the proper actions on the track. Once we have demonstrated that we are a legitimate team, then we aim to demonstrate improvement after that.”
Racing Talent and Hiring Drive
In August they recruited Sergio Perez and Valtteri as their pilots for 2026, a tandem remarkable for their invaluable experience in operating at the front in two championship-winning squads, Red Bull and the Mercedes team, and the Finnish driver echoed the mood of fighting spirit.
“Naturally, we are pragmatic,” he commented. “We have a mountain of work to do, and we expect most likely a difficult start, because it's the top level of motorsport. But we’re not there to remain at the rear. I am confident with this setup, with this group, this staff, there’s no reason why we won't be able to advance swiftly up to the pace and achieve good results.”
To that end hiring has been in full swing, with employees now reaching in excess of 400 and planned to reach the goal of six hundred swiftly. In addition to their existing facility at Silverstone, the squad are in the process of finishing an headquarters at the Fishers location in Indy and there is the General Motors facility in North Carolina, where they are constructing the plant to build the new engine, scheduled for 2029 – until then they will use power from Ferrari – and the aerodynamic facility in Cologne, Germany. It is a sophisticated organisation, different from the movement in Formula One for more centralization, and has prompted the innovative team culture to which the CTO alluded.
Space Mission Inspiration
“We've drawn heavily from the Apollo project,” stated Graeme Lowdon just before the Silverstone race in July. “We have a clear-eyed view, we recognize how tough it is. The timelines, they’re super, super, super short. Well, it's not a space expedition, but the pressure is comparable.”
So they have implemented, as opposed to the traditional management structure, a decentralized management similar to that of Nasa’s, where there were a range of Apollo teams all focusing on distinct elements of the mission in a different facilities.
“In a system where you follow a process where a challenge emerges and they escalate it to their team leader, that manager consults a supervisor at a different location, it goes back down the chain, the process is very slow,” notes Chester. “Therefore we enable people to really get on with it. Moving away from hierarchical consent for everything is far more efficient and quicker.”
Upcoming Challenges
The efficacy of this flexible methodology will be proven in the heat of competition when the season begins and there is a considerable amount riding on this for the sport, too. Cadillac have recruited as their reserve driver the 25-year-old Californian Colton Herta
