American Dream: Cadillac’s Formula 1 Entry
After years of political wrangling, the iconic American brand Cadillac is set to make history as Formula 1's newest team. Backed by General Motors and TWG Motorsports, Cadillac becomes the first completely new team since Haas in 2016. This marks them as the first American manufacturer to field an F1 car in decades. However, Cadillac's Formula 1 entry was not easy.
The road to Cadillac's Formula 1 entry wasn't smooth. When GM's Cadillac brand and Michael Andretti's Andretti Global first announced their F1 bid in January 2023, they faced an unexpected obstacle. While the FIA (Formula 1's governing body) approved their entry, Formula One Management, led by CEO Stefano Domenicali, outright rejected it. The existing teams questioned what value Andretti would bring to the sport, and F1 officials suggested they'd only reconsider if GM committed to building its own power units rather than buying engines from another manufacturer. Or as they say: A customer team.
The stalemate lasted nearly two years, but in a surprising turn of events, Michael Andretti, whose name had been on the project from day one, stepped back from day-to-day leadership in late 2024. Dan Towriss's TWG Global investment group then took over business operations, rebranding the effort and making GM's Cadillac the face of the team, agreeing to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to design, develop, and manufacture their own Formula 1 power units from scrap. Michael then moved to an advisory role while his father, 1978 F1 World Champion Mario Andretti, joined the board of directors to lend credibility and experience, paving the way for Cadillac's Formula 1 entry.
With Cadillac now front and center and GM's long-term engine commitment formalized, Formula One Management finally approved in March 2025, allowing Cadillac's Formula 1 entry in the 2026 grid. The team now operates from four locations across the United States and England, with its headquarters and manufacturing hub in Fishers, Indiana. Even going as far as to sign the Mexican veteran, Sergio Pérez, pairing him with Valtteri Bottas. However, Cadillac's Formula 1 entry still faces one major challenge.
While GM has committed to building its own power units, developing a competitive F1 engine from scratch will take years. So rather than rush an underdeveloped engine to the grid, Cadillac will lease proven Ferrari power units for 2026, 2027, and 2028. This gives them time to learn F1 operations while GM's engineers develop, test, and refine their own Cadillac-branded engine. When 2029 arrives, they'll switch to their homegrown power unit, becoming F1's sixth engine manufacturer alongside Mercedes, Ferrari, Honda, Renault, and Red Bull Powertrains, cementing Cadillac's Formula 1 entry.
Cadillac made a dramatic entrance by revealing its striking asymmetrical livery during a Super Bowl commercial, featuring predominantly white on one side and black on the other. The team has already impressed by completing 164 laps during Barcelona testing in late January. Pre-season testing continues in Bahrain from February 11-13, ahead of Cadillac's race debut at the Australian Grand Prix on March 6-8. Going into Bahrain, they aim to demonstrate that America's F1 return is more than bold marketing.
