Approximately one year ago at the Vegas Grand Prix, Cadillac were finally granted the green light as the world of Formula One's latest participant for 2026. Establishing the organization from nothing has required a intense pace of work that the team boss, Graeme Lowdon, has likened to the Apollo program. As Formula One descends on Las Vegas this weekend, Cadillac know the deadline is approaching.
The Countdown to Melbourne
At the final race of the campaign to be hosted in the US, with approximately 100 days to go before they take to the track for the first time in Melbourne at the first race of 2026, the Cadillac F1 project have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a monumental endeavor, they are cognizant there will never be enough hours in the day.
The CTO, Nick Chester, became part of the embryonic operation in early 2023 shortly after it was created, when the organization were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its heart since then and enjoys a amused expression when considering the ride.
“There might be a brief moment thinking back at what the team has achieved and think: ‘Wow, how impressive what we’ve done in less than three years,’” Chester states. “But then the next minute you think: ‘Yeah, we’ve still got a great deal to do.’”
A One-of-a-Kind Opportunity
The CTO achieved victories at the Renault team in Alonso's championship-winning campaigns of 2005/2006 and was in charge of technical direction at the recently formed Mercedes-Benz Formula E team, but no other project has truly matched the mission of bringing the quintessentially American Cadillac marque, a factory team sponsored by the parent company, General Motors, into Formula One.
“Establishing an grand prix team from nothing, when are you ever going to get a chance to do that?” Chester remarks. “There's nothing comparable. In an well-set team you don’t get the possibility to alter team culture.”
With every day that goes by thoughts are more focused on the approaching moment of truth in Australia and expectations are being managed.
“One must presume that any new team entering the sport is going to be last but merely participating will be an achievement in itself,” Lowdon commented earlier this year and while the CTO agreed with this sentiment he believed the organization had a statement to make as well.
“The initial objective we intend to prove is that we belong on the grid,” he emphasizes. “So that we arrive and we operate well. We want to show that this is a professional operation doing the proper actions on the track. When we have demonstrated that we’re really credible, then we want to show improvement subsequently.”
Pilot Selection and Team Building Push
In August they signed Checo Pérez and Bottas as their racers for 2026, a tandem distinguished for their invaluable experience in operating at the sharp end in two of the sport’s biggest teams, the Red Bull team and the Mercedes team, and Bottas echoed the sentiment of fighting spirit.
“Of course, we have a realistic outlook,” Bottas stated. “We have a mountain of work to do, and it will likely be probably a tough opening, because this is Formula One. But our goal isn't to finish last. I believe with this structure, with these individuals, these people, it's entirely possible we won't be able to progress rapidly up to the pace and taste victory.”
To that end staff acquisition has been in top gear, with employees now at more than 400 and intended to attain the objective of 600 quickly. In addition to their existing facility at Silverstone, the organization are in the midst of building an headquarters at Fishers, Indiana in the Indianapolis area and there is the GM works in North Carolina, where they are building the plant to manufacture the power unit, set for 2029 – until then they will use power from Ferrari – and the aerodynamic facility in Cologne. It is a intricate organisation, contrary to the direction in Formula One for more centralization, and has led to the innovative team culture to which Nick Chester referred.
Apollo Model
“It's closely based on the Apollo project,” stated Lowdon ahead of the British Grand Prix in July. “We have a clear-eyed view, we understand how difficult it is. The deadlines, they’re super, super, super short. Alright, we’re not putting a man on the moon, but it feels like it sometimes.”
So they have adopted, rather than the traditional management structure, a non-hierarchical approach similar to that of Nasa’s, where there were a variety of Apollo teams all tackling various components of the project in a multiple sites.
“In a system where you follow a protocol where a challenge emerges and they report it to their manager, that supervisor talks to a leader somewhere else, it travels back down, it becomes inefficient,” says the CTO. “We give authority to people to take charge. Avoiding management approval for each action is far more efficient and faster.”
Upcoming Challenges
The success of this nimble approach will be proven in the heat of competition in 2026 and there is a considerable amount at stake for F1, too. Cadillac have signed as their test driver the 25-year-old Californian Colton Herta
