Just over twelve months ago at the Nevada Grand Prix, the Cadillac racing team were ultimately granted the official approval as Formula One’s latest participant for 2026. Constructing the organization from the ground up has required a hectic work rate that the principal, Graeme Lowdon, has equated to the NASA lunar mission. As F1 descends on the Vegas strip this race weekend, the team understand time is getting tight.
The Countdown to Melbourne
At the final race of the championship to be hosted in the America, with just over three months to go before they hit the circuit for the maiden outing in Australia at the first race of 2026, the Cadillac F1 project have come on in leaps and bounds but, in what must seem like a never-ending challenge, they are conscious there will not be adequate time.
The chief technical officer, Nick Chester, became part of the newly formed project in March 2023 not long after it was established, when the team were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its heart since then and gets a wry smile when reflecting on the ride.
“You might get a short period reflecting at what the team has achieved and go: ‘Amazing, how impressive what we have built in a short three-year period,’” he says. “And then the following moment you realize: ‘Well, there is still a great deal to do.’”
A Unique Task
Chester achieved victories at the Renault team in Fernando Alonso’s championship-winning campaigns of 2005/2006 and was in command of technical development at the then-new Mercedes Formula E team, but nothing has truly matched the challenge of bringing the iconic American Cadillac marque, a manufacturer-backed entry supported by the corporate entity, General Motors Corporation, into Formula One.
“Creating an F1 team from scratch, how often do you get the opportunity to do that?” he says. “There's nothing comparable. In an existing team you don’t get the chance to transform organizational mindset.”
With each passing day that goes by focus are increasingly concentrated on the looming moment of truth in Melbourne and targets are being set realistically.
“One must presume that any new team joining the grid is likely to start at the back but merely participating will be an feat in itself,” the team principal noted recently and while Chester echoed this he thought the squad had a reputation to build as well.
“The first thing we intend to prove is that we deserve to be there,” he says. “In order that we arrive and we operate well. We aim to demonstrate that this is a professional operation executing the correct procedures on the race track. When we prove that we are a legitimate team, then we want to show progression subsequently.”
Pilot Selection and Team Building Push
In August they contracted Checo Pérez and Valtteri as their drivers for the 2026 season, a duo distinguished for their priceless expertise in operating at the front in two of the sport’s biggest teams, Red Bull Racing and Mercedes, and Bottas expressed the mood of combative optimism.
“Naturally, we are pragmatic,” he said. “We face a mountain of work to do, and it will likely be most likely a challenging beginning, because this is Formula One. But we aren't joining to remain at the rear. I believe with this setup, with these individuals, these personnel, it's entirely possible we shouldn’t be able to progress rapidly to a competitive level and enjoy some success.”
To achieve that goal hiring has been in full swing, with employees now up to over 400 and planned to hit the objective of 600 members swiftly. Alongside their current base at the Silverstone circuit, the squad are in the phase of completing an headquarters at Fishers in Indianapolis and there is the GM works in North Carolina, where they are developing the facility to produce the new engine, set for the 2029 season – until then they will run Ferrari engines – and the Toyota's wind tunnel in Germany. It is a sophisticated organization, contrary to the movement in the sport for increased consolidation, and has inspired the fresh organizational mindset to which Nick Chester referred to.
Space Mission Blueprint
“It’s highly modelled on the Apollo program,” remarked Lowdon ahead of the British GP in mid-season. “We have a clear-eyed view, we know how tough it is. The timelines, are extremely compressed. Well, it's not a space expedition, but the pressure is comparable.”
So they have adopted, instead of the conventional chain of command, a flat management structure comparable to that of the space agency's, where there were a assortment of specialist groups all focusing on distinct elements of the mission in a variety of locations.
“When you must follow a protocol where a challenge emerges and they report it to their manager, that leader communicates with a supervisor in another department, it is relayed back, it’s super slow,” notes Chester. “So we empower team members to really get on with it. Eliminating managerial sign-off for everything is far more efficient and quicker.”
What Lies Ahead
The effectiveness of this agile methodology will be proven in the intensity of Grand Prix when the season begins and there is no little amount on the line for Formula One, too. Cadillac have signed as their reserve driver the emerging Californian Colton Herta
