Approximately twelve months ago at the Vegas Grand Prix, the Cadillac racing team were finally awarded the official approval as the world of Formula One's newest entrant for the 2026 season. Constructing the organization from nothing has involved a frenetic work rate that the team boss, Graeme Lowdon, has equated to the NASA lunar mission. As the sport converges on Vegas this race weekend, Cadillac know time is getting tight.
The Countdown to Melbourne
At the final race of the campaign to be staged in the United States, with around three months to go before they hit the circuit for the maiden outing in Melbourne at the first race of 2026, the Cadillac F1 project have advanced rapidly but, in what must seem like a sisyphean endeavor, they are aware there will never be adequate time.
The CTO, Nick Chester, became part of the nascent team in the spring of 2023 shortly after it was established, 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 ride.
“There might be a short period reflecting at what the team has achieved and think: ‘Amazing, isn’t this fantastic what the team has created in under three years,’” Chester states. “Then the following moment you think: ‘Well, there is still a great deal to do.’”
A One-of-a-Kind Task
Nick Chester had success at the Renault team in the driver Fernando Alonso's title-winning campaigns of the mid-2000s and was in command of engineering strategy at the new Mercedes electric racing team, but nothing has quite compared with the mission of bringing the quintessentially American Cadillac brand, a works entry supported by the corporate entity, GM, into F1.
“Establishing an Formula One team from scratch, when are you ever going to get a chance to do that?” Chester remarks. “It's unparalleled. In an existing team you don’t get the possibility to transform organizational mindset.”
With each passing day that goes by minds are increasingly concentrated on the looming moment of truth in Melbourne and targets are being handled.
“One must presume that a brand-new squad joining the grid is probably going to finish last but merely participating will be an achievement in itself,” Graeme Lowdon commented recently and while Nick Chester agreed with this sentiment he thought the team had a point to prove as well.
“The initial objective we intend to prove is that we deserve to be there,” Chester explains. “In order that we show up and we function efficiently. We want to show that we are a serious contender doing the right things on the race track. When we prove that we’re really credible, then we aim to demonstrate progression from there on.”
Racing Talent and Recruitment Push
In August they signed Checo Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their racers for the 2026 season, a tandem distinguished for their vast knowledge in competing at the leading positions in two top-tier teams, Red Bull Racing and Mercedes-AMG, and the Finnish driver reflected the sentiment of fighting spirit.
“Of course, we have a realistic outlook,” Bottas stated. “We have a massive task to do, and we expect most likely a tough opening, because this is Formula One. But our goal isn't to finish last. I believe with this structure, with this team, these personnel, there is every reason that we won't be able to advance swiftly to the front and enjoy some success.”
To achieve that goal staff acquisition has been in top gear, with employees now reaching over 400 and intended to hit the goal of six hundred rapidly. In addition to their existing facility at Silverstone, the organization are in the phase of completing an HQ at Fishers in the Indianapolis area and there is the General Motors facility in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they are developing the plant to build the new engine, planned for the 2029 season – in the meantime they will run Ferrari power units – and the aerodynamic facility in Germany. It is a complex structure, different from the direction in the sport for greater centralisation, and has led to the innovative team culture to which Nick Chester referred to.
Space Mission Inspiration
“It's closely based on the Apollo project,” said Lowdon ahead of the Silverstone race in mid-season. “We are pragmatic, we understand how difficult it is. The schedules, they’re super, super, super short. OK, it's not a space expedition, but it feels like it sometimes.”
So they have adopted, as opposed to the usual hierarchical system, a non-hierarchical approach akin to that of the space agency's, where there were a variety of project teams all tackling distinct elements of the mission across a variety of locations.
“If you have to go through a protocol where someone has a problem and they report it to their supervisor, that supervisor talks to a leader somewhere else, it goes back down the chain, the process is very slow,” explains the CTO. “We give authority to staff to really get on with it. Moving away from hierarchical consent for each action is much smoother and faster.”
The Future
The effectiveness of this nimble strategy will be proven in the heat of competition next season and there is a significant degree at stake for Formula One, too. The Cadillac team have signed as their reserve driver the 25-year-old American Colton Herta
