Cadillac F1 therefore held its presentation event this night in Miami but it was mainly a private party and the only element revealed to the public is good, as we report, the graphic charter mixing black, white, silver and chrome, which the team will use in 2026 (see the video below).
After Graeme Lowdon in recent days, it was Dan Towriss who has taken stock of the project. And he has work to do, even a bakery: because the CEO of TWG Motorsport, the structure which oversees the entrance to Cadillac in F1, must obviously prepare the entry into competition of the 11th F1 team next year.
The clock is running: the first Grand Prix of the 2026 season is fast approaching!
But at least, the arrival of Cadillac in F1 will indeed become reality, after a series of setbacks encountered throughout the project. It was necessary to attract General Motors and to scratch the name of Andretti…
“It was certainly a relief, or momentary relief, then you suddenly realize that the countdown started to be on the grid,” said Towriss.
The Cadillac project had undergone a dam fire from other teams, ultimately overcome. An event that welded Cadillac continues Towriss.
“I am happy not to have known at the beginning how difficult it would be, and all that we would have to cross to arrive at this process of approval. »»
“But that forged the partnership with GM, and it is stronger than it would have been if we had been admitted directly. »»
“I think what we were able to build during this period, the team that Graeme [Lowdon] In place in Silverstone, would not be where it is today without adversity. »»
“So I think we love where we are. »»
“And you have to invest a lot. You can’t just make a presentation and say: ‘I want to come in F1.’ You have to show everything you can do. »»
“We were hiring, we had a car in the wind tunnel, and we did all these things from a design point of view to demonstrate that the elements of the PowerPoint, of the presentation, were valid. »»
“And then commercially, we had to demonstrate the value, and the partnership with GM, all these things together. And we were told ‘no’, several times, sometimes kindly, sometimes not so kind! »»
“But everything could finally be put in place, and they saw the value we bring to the series. And now that we are there, we feel very welcome in F1, and we are really delighted to be on the grid in 2026. ”
Now the war ax is buried with the other F1 teams. And beyond even Ferrari, who will motorize Cadillac until 2029.
-“I think we feel very welcome on the grid. The partnership we have with Ferrari during this intermediate period before the arrival of the Cadillac power unit was fantastic. »»
“But really, all the team directors contacted us. It was great to speak with them. F1 was fantastic, Liberty, FIA. Now that we’re here, it’s great, we can just focus on the race. »»
Time does not turn in favor of Cadillac
The CEO nevertheless concedes that the lack of rolling will necessarily handicap Cadillac. Even if the regulatory revolution of 2026 a little resets the meters to zero for everyone.
“At the factory, there is a clock that counts. So everyone knows every day that time is not on our side. And therefore the intensity continues to increase from this point of view. »»
“We had a blower model, but he did not have the Pirelli tires, he had a modeled version. »»
“And therefore not being able to correlate this on the track, (it is a handicap). And moreover, we do not have the data that a new team would not have in relation to an existing team. »»
“All this will be challenges that we think we can overcome, but we are certainly confronted with it. »»
Another problem for Cadillac is at the level of human resources: if Cadillac recruits an engineer from another team, he must observe a notice period, the famous gardening leave. And so he can’t work on next year’s car …
“The good news is that we have been hiring for several years”, a dit Towriss.
“And so we were able to recruit great talents in F1, with great experience from this point of view, in the team, and we manage these periods of gardening leave. »»
“This continues to be a challenge as new people arrive from this point of view, that’s for sure, but we are satisfied with the team we have, and we have the arrangements in place to give us the flexibility we need to build the team. »»
The team will have a factory in Silverstone, but also in Indiana, in Fishers; This is where the F1 cars are built, while Silverstone will be above all a logistics hub.
However, the Fishers factory will not be ready in time for 2026.
“From a commercial point of view, we expect Fishers to open at the end of the first quarter of next year, then it will continue”, a dit Towriss.
“Some manufacturing capacities will continue to be added. And we will very carefully internalize things once we are convinced that we are ready to take care of them. »»
