Cadillac has completed its first half-season in Formula 1, encountering significant reliability issues despite an otherwise sturdy start. The team, backed by TWG Motorsports and General Motors, has recorded nine retirements across 11 races this season.
This figure is second only to Aston Martin in terms of retirements. Brake failures have been a primary concern, accounting for four retirements. Suspension problems have led to three additional retirements.
The most recent event, the Hungarian Grand Prix on July 26, 2026, saw both Cadillac cars retire due to brake overheating. Valtteri Bottas pulled into the pit lane on Lap 15 with his left-front brake on fire.
Sergio Pérez, who started from the pit lane, also retired late in the race with brake issues. This marked a frustrating double retirement for the American squad.
Bottas has experienced a series of brake-related retirements, including incidents in Monaco, Barcelona, and Austria. Following the Austrian Grand Prix, Bottas suggested the team consider an aerodynamic penalty for improved brake cooling.
Beyond brakes, fuel system problems also affected Bottas in Australia and Pérez in China earlier in the season. These issues have cost Cadillac valuable track time and data acquisition.
The Cadillac Formula 1 Team operates under TWG Motorsports, a division of TWG Global Holdings, LLC, established in late 2024. Dan Towriss serves as CEO of TWG Motorsports and Cadillac F1 Team Holdings LLC.
Graeme Lowdon is the Team Principal, with Nick Chester as Chief Technical Officer and Rob White as Chief Operating Officer. The team maintains multiple operational bases.
These include facilities in Fishers, Indiana; Concord, North Carolina; Warren, Michigan, in the United States, and Silverstone, England. A new 400,000-square-foot headquarters is under construction in Fishers, Indiana.
This $200 million facility is expected to employ approximately 300 engineers and staff. The engine development department will be based in North Carolina.
Cadillac currently uses Ferrari 067/6 1.6-liter V6 Turbo hybrid power units, which deliver between 750 and 850 horsepower. This customer power unit agreement is in place until the end of the 2028 season.
General Motors Performance Power Units LLC (GM PPU) was approved by the FIA in April 2025 to become an F1 power unit supplier from 2029. The GM PPU project is reportedly ahead of schedule.
Russ O’Blenes is the CEO of GM PPU, which aims to produce its own American-built F1 power unit. The team’s car, the MAC-26, is named after Mario Andretti Cadillac.
The MAC-26 made its competitive debut at the 2026 Australian Grand Prix on March 8, 2026. It features a moulded carbon fiber and aluminum honeycomb composite structure.
Drivers Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas were signed on August 26, 2025, bringing a combined total of over 500 Grand Prix starts and 16 race wins to the team.
Pérez has shown strong form, particularly after his departure from Red Bull. Bottas has also demonstrated competitive pace, narrowing the qualifying head-to-head deficit to 6-5.
Cadillac has shown signs of progress in pace, reducing its qualifying deficit from over four seconds in Australia to approximately two seconds in recent races.
Valtteri Bottas achieved Cadillac’s best result so far with a 13th-place finish at the Chinese Grand Prix, where both cars completed the race. Pérez finished 15th in the same event.
The team introduced a significant upgrade package at the Austrian Grand Prix, aimed at improving tyre management. While performance showed encouraging signs, reliability issues prevented a strong result.
Mario Andretti, a Cadillac F1 board member, has set a target for the team to consistently challenge for points finishes before the conclusion of the 2026 season.
Colton Herta serves as a test driver for Cadillac. His current performance in Formula 2 has been challenging, with him sitting 16th in the standings.
Herta finished 19th in the Hungarian GP Feature Race on July 26, 2026. He had a top-five finish and six top-10 finishes in 18 attempts in F2.
The MAC-26 initially featured an asymmetrical black and white livery, a design not seen since the 1999 BAR 01. A revised, predominantly white symmetrical livery debuted at the Austrian Grand Prix.
TWG AI, an enterprise-wide intelligence layer, is a primary and exclusive AI partner for the Cadillac Formula 1 Team. This partnership aims to enhance efficiency and effectiveness across TWG Motorsports operations.
