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Just over twelve months previously at the Nevada Grand Prix, Cadillac were ultimately granted the green light as Formula One’s most recent entry for the 2026 season. Building the squad from scratch has entailed a intense operating tempo that the principal, Graeme Lowdon, has equated to the Apollo moon landing. As the sport converges on the Vegas strip this weekend, the team are aware the deadline is approaching.

The Race Against Time to Australia

At the season finale of the championship to be held in the United States, with just over 100 days to go before they make their debut for the first time in Australia at the first race of 2026, the Cadillac F1 project have advanced rapidly but, in what must seem like a monumental endeavor, they are conscious there will not be enough hours in the day.

The CTO, Nick Chester, became part of the nascent project in early 2023 soon after it was created, when the squad were without even an approved entry. He has been at its heart ever since and has a wry smile when reflecting on the journey.

“There might be a brief moment looking back at what you’ve done and think: ‘Incredible, isn’t this fantastic what we have built in a short three-year period,’” he notes. “But then the next minute you consider: ‘Yes, we still have a significant amount to do.’”

An Unprecedented Challenge

The CTO enjoyed success at the Renault team in Fernando Alonso’s championship-winning seasons of 2005 and 2006 and was in control of technical development at the then-new Mercedes Formula E team, but nothing has truly matched the mission of introducing the iconic American Cadillac name, a manufacturer-backed entry sponsored by the parent company, General Motors Corporation, into F1.

“Creating an F1 team from scratch, how often do you get the opportunity to do that?” Chester remarks. “There's nothing comparable. In an established team you don’t get the chance to transform organizational mindset.”

With each passing day that goes by focus are more focused on the looming moment of truth in Australia and goals are being set realistically.

“It's reasonable to expect that any new team joining the grid is probably going to finish last but just making it to the starting line will be an achievement in itself,” the team principal noted this year and while Chester agreed with this sentiment he felt the squad had a reputation to build as well.

“Our primary goal we aim to demonstrate is that we deserve to be there,” he says. “So we show up and we function efficiently. We aim to demonstrate that we are a serious contender executing the right things on the track. After we prove that our credentials are solid, then we aim to demonstrate forward movement after that.”

Pilot Selection and Team Building Push

In August they recruited Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their racers for 2026, a tandem distinguished for their invaluable experience in operating at the leading positions in two of the sport’s biggest teams, Red Bull Racing and Mercedes, and Bottas echoed the sentiment of combative optimism.

“Of course, we’re realistic,” Bottas stated. “We face a massive task to do, and it’s going to be almost certainly a difficult start, because it is F1. But we aren't joining to remain at the rear. I am confident with this setup, with this group, this staff, there’s no reason why we can't manage to get relatively quickly to the front and enjoy some success.”

To realize that ambition staff acquisition has been in full swing, with employees now reaching in excess of 400 and intended to hit the objective of 600 swiftly. Alongside their existing facility at the Silverstone circuit, the team are in the midst of completing an main base at the Fishers location in the Indianapolis area and there is the GM plant in North Carolina, where they are constructing the facility to build the 2029 engine, planned for the 2029 season – for now they will run Ferrari power units – and the Toyota wind tunnel in Cologne, Germany. It is a intricate organization, contrary to the direction in F1 for greater centralisation, and has inspired the fresh organizational mindset to which Nick Chester referred to.

Apollo Blueprint

“It's closely based on the Apollo program,” remarked Graeme Lowdon just before the British GP in the summer. “We’re realistic, we understand how tough it is. The schedules, they’re super, super, super short. Well, it's not a space expedition, but it feels like it sometimes.”

So they have embraced, rather than the usual hierarchical system, a flat management structure akin to that of Nasa’s, where there were a range of specialist groups all working on distinct elements of the program at a variety of locations.

“In a system where you follow a procedure where a challenge emerges and they raise it up to their manager, that supervisor consults a leader in another department, it goes back down the chain, the process is very slow,” notes Chester. “We give authority to people to take charge. Moving away from management approval for all decisions is much smoother and quicker.”

The Future

The efficacy of this flexible methodology will be tested in the heat of competition next season and there is a significant degree on the line for F1, too. Cadillac have taken on as their test driver the emerging Californian Colton Herta