Just over a full year previously at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Cadillac were finally given the go-ahead as Formula One’s newest entry for the 2026 season. Establishing the organization from scratch has entailed a intense operating tempo that the principal, Graeme Lowdon, has equated to the NASA lunar mission. As Formula One descends on Las Vegas this weekend, Cadillac understand the clock is ticking.
The Race Against Time to Australia
At the last event of the season to be staged in the America, with just over 100 days to go before they make their debut for the maiden outing in Melbourne at the 2026 season opener, the Cadillac F1 project have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a never-ending task, they are cognizant there will not be adequate time.
The CTO, Nick Chester, became part of the nascent operation in March 2023 shortly after it was formed, when the organization were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its heart from that point and has a amused expression when reflecting on the experience.
“You can have a short period looking back at what the team has achieved and say: ‘Amazing, what an achievement what the team has created in less than three years,’” he says. “And then the very next instant you think: ‘Well, there is still quite a lot to do.’”
A Unique Opportunity
Nick Chester enjoyed success at the Renault team in Fernando Alonso’s title-winning seasons of 2005 and 2006 and was in command of technical direction at the then-new Mercedes-Benz Formula E team, but no previous experience has quite compared with the task of launching the quintessentially American Cadillac brand, a manufacturer-backed entry sponsored by the parent company, General Motors Corporation, into the pinnacle of motorsport.
“Establishing an F1 team from scratch, how often do you get the opportunity to do that?” he observes. “It is like nothing else. In an established team you rarely get the opportunity to alter cultural approach.”
With each day that passes minds are more focused on the impending moment of truth in Melbourne and goals are being handled.
“You have to assume that any incoming team entering the sport is probably going to finish last but just making it to the starting line will be an feat in itself,” Graeme Lowdon noted recently and while Nick Chester agreed with this sentiment he felt the team had a statement to make as well.
“Our primary goal we aim to demonstrate is that we belong on the grid,” Chester explains. “In order that we turn up and we operate well. We want to show that we are a serious contender executing the correct procedures on the race track. After we have demonstrated that we are a legitimate team, then we want to show improvement subsequently.”
Pilot Selection and Team Building Effort
In August they recruited Checo Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their drivers for 2026, a duo notable for their invaluable experience in performing at the front in two championship-winning squads, Red Bull and Mercedes-AMG, and Valtteri Bottas reflected the attitude of combative optimism.
“Certainly, we have a realistic outlook,” Bottas stated. “We face a huge amount 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 stay at the back. I am confident given this organization, with this team, these personnel, there is every reason that we shouldn’t be able to advance swiftly to a competitive level and taste victory.”
To achieve that goal hiring has been in top gear, with staff now reaching over 400 and intended to reach the objective of 600 members swiftly. In addition to their present headquarters at Silverstone, the organization are in the midst of completing an HQ at Fishers, Indiana in Indy and there is the GM plant in Charlotte, where they are constructing the center to build the new engine, scheduled for 2029 – for now they will operate with Ferrari power units – and the Toyota wind tunnel in Germany. It is a sophisticated structure, contrary to the movement in the sport for greater centralisation, and has prompted the innovative team culture to which Chester referred to.
Apollo Blueprint
“It’s highly modelled on the Apollo project,” said the team principal just before the British Grand Prix in mid-season. “We have a clear-eyed view, we know how difficult it is. The timelines, they’re super, super, super short. OK, we aren't launching a lunar mission, but the pressure is comparable.”
So they have implemented, as opposed to the usual hierarchical system, a flat management structure similar to that of Nasa’s, where there were a assortment of specialist groups all working on distinct elements of the mission across a variety of locations.
“In a system where you follow a procedure where someone has a problem and they raise it up to their manager, that leader consults a leader at a different location, it travels back down, it’s super slow,” says Nick Chester. “We give authority to people to really get on with it. Moving away from managerial sign-off for all decisions is much smoother and more rapid.”
Upcoming Challenges
The success of this nimble methodology will be proven in the pressure of racing in 2026 and there is a considerable amount at stake for Formula One, too. The Cadillac team have recruited as their reserve driver the young American Colton Herta
