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A little more than one year ago at the Vegas Grand Prix, Cadillac were at last given the green light as F1's most recent participant for 2026. Establishing the squad from nothing has involved a hectic pace of work that the team boss, Graeme Lowdon, has likened to the NASA lunar mission. As Formula One arrives on Las Vegas this weekend, the team understand the clock is ticking.

The Race Against Time to Melbourne

At the final race of the campaign to be staged in the United States, with just over 100 days to go before they hit the circuit for the inaugural time in Melbourne at the first race of 2026, Cadillac have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a monumental endeavor, they are aware there will never be adequate time.

The chief technical officer, Nick Chester, joined the nascent project in early 2023 soon after it was established, when the team were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its heart since then and has a amused expression when thinking about the ride.

“There might be a short period looking back at what you have accomplished and think: ‘Wow, how impressive what the team has created in a short three-year period,’” Chester states. “Then the very next instant you consider: ‘Well, we’ve still got a great deal to do.’”

A One-of-a-Kind Task

Chester achieved victories at the Renault team in the driver Fernando Alonso's title-winning seasons of the mid-2000s and was in command of technical development at the new Mercedes-Benz Formula E team, but no previous experience has quite compared with the task of introducing the all-American Cadillac name, a works entry backed by the owner, General Motors Corporation, into Formula One.

“Establishing an grand prix team from nothing, how often do you get the opportunity to do that?” he observes. “There's nothing comparable. In an established team you won't have the opportunity to alter cultural approach.”

With each passing day that goes by focus are increasingly concentrated on the impending moment of truth in Melbourne and goals are being set realistically.

“One must presume that a brand-new squad entering the sport is probably going to finish last but merely participating will be an achievement in itself,” Lowdon noted earlier this year and while the CTO echoed this he thought the team had a statement to make as well.

“The first thing we want to show is that we deserve to be there,” he says. “So we turn up and we function efficiently. We want to show that we are a serious contender executing the proper actions on the circuit. After we have demonstrated that we are a legitimate team, then we will focus on forward movement from there on.”

Racing Talent and Recruitment Drive

In August they recruited Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their racers for 2026, a duo notable for their vast knowledge in performing at the leading positions in two championship-winning squads, Red Bull and the Mercedes team, and the Finnish driver reflected the attitude of determined optimism.

“Naturally, we’re realistic,” Bottas stated. “We face a mountain of work to do, and we expect almost certainly a difficult start, because it's the top level of motorsport. But our goal isn't to stay at the back. I believe given this organization, with these individuals, these people, it's entirely possible we can't manage to advance swiftly to the front and taste victory.”

To achieve that goal hiring has been in top gear, with employees now up to in excess of 400 and scheduled to reach the target of 600 quickly. Alongside their present headquarters at the Silverstone circuit, the organization are in the process of completing an headquarters at the Fishers location in the Indianapolis area and there is the GM plant in Charlotte, where they are constructing the facility to build the power unit, set for 2029 – for now they will run Ferrari power units – and the aerodynamic facility in Cologne, Germany. It is a sophisticated organisation, different from the trend in the sport for increased consolidation, and has led to the fresh organizational mindset to which Chester referred to.

Space Mission Inspiration

“It's closely based on the NASA moon mission,” remarked Graeme Lowdon just before the Silverstone race in the summer. “We’re realistic, we understand how challenging it is. The schedules, are incredibly tight. Alright, it's not a space expedition, but the pressure is comparable.”

So they have implemented, instead of the conventional chain of command, a flat management structure comparable to that of NASA's, where there were a range of project teams all working on different aspects of the project at a different facilities.

“If you have to go through a procedure where an issue arises and they raise it up to their team leader, that leader talks to a leader at a different location, it is relayed back, the process is very slow,” says Nick Chester. “We give authority to staff to handle things directly. Eliminating managerial sign-off for each action is far more efficient and more rapid.”

Upcoming Challenges

The efficacy of this agile approach will be evaluated in the heat of competition when the season begins and there is a significant degree on the line for F1, too. The Cadillac team have taken on as their reserve driver the 25-year-old Californian Colton Herta