There’s nothing unusual about a team principal holding a press conference before the start of a new Formula 1 season. But this week, that team principal wasn’t preparing at team to race in Melbourne this weekend.
Graeme Lowdon was named as the first team principal of the new Cadillac F1 team late last year and started full-time in that role after the final race of 2024. But despite being the spokesperson and leader for the first new team in a decade — and with an exciting road ahead — you wouldn’t have heard much from him prior to March.
Cadillac felt the timing wasn’t right to go around publicly speaking about its planned entry in 2026 until it had official confirmation of its place on the grid. Formula One Management (FOM) had announced in November that it was working towards making that happen, and the FIA had already approved the team as an acceptable new entrant, but there were still further assessments that F1 wanted to do.
Having completed the commercial and technical analysis it wanted in collaboration with Cadillac, F1 and the FIA confirmed the team had met its requirements last Friday, formally approving its place in the sport.
And with that, the team can start telling its story.
There’s a lot to cover as you can imagine, but Lowdon is not upset that Cadillac only has certainty over its program10 months before it needs to run a car for the first time.
“For sure, we would prefer everything much earlier, that goes without saying,” Lowdon said. “But we’ve respected the process throughout. It’s been incredibly thorough. That’s one thing I would highlight.
“In fact, I would say it’s been unprecedented, you know, in terms of the level of scrutiny and so on. And so we’re very thankful to the FIA and to FOM for carrying out such thorough evaluation. But the flip side of that is now for the first time we’re actually clear of any restriction whatsoever and we can act like any other team and time is reasonably short. But that’s just part of the challenge, and we just have to rise to it and deal with it and get on with it.
“Would we have preferred to have confirmation much earlier? Yes, of course we would. But we’ve respected the process and this is the timing that we’ve been given. So, we just have to move ahead and make sure we do the best job we possibly can.”
Cadillac has often mentioned the fact that its work was continuing apace, even prior to getting any sort of confirmation it would be on the grid, and it had to do so in order to be ready for 2026. Lowdon says it’s a given that the team must be on time with its first car, and so crash testing has already been taking place, with a first chassis due in the next two weeks.
But if you thought the late confirmation would be offset by a freedom to do whatever it likes as a new team not currently racing in F1, think again.
“In terms of the regulations that we fall under, basically, we will have to be under the ’26 regulations like every other team,” Lowdon said. “And then there are other regulations which we’ve agreed to be under this year, which I think, again, is unprecedented. I think, for example, when Haas came in, they weren’t under any regulation at all until they went racing. But there are certain regulations that we’re adhering to either through agreement or in some instances through choice — through our choice as well.
“So, the whole process of coming in is different from how any other team’s been able to come in in the past.”
Graeme Lowdon has a lot to do in a short time as team principal at Cadillac F1. Andy Hone/GettyImages
For many fans, one of the most exciting aspects of Cadillac’s arrival will be the addition of two new race seats, and more opportunities for drivers. That in turn leads to a significant focus on who will form the first driver line-up for the team, with names such as Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas and Colton Herta all put to Lowdon in his initial appearance.
It’s another area where the team will have to play catch-up, having been unable to be a factor in the driver market as it went through a remarkably volatile period over the past 12 months.
“I think in terms of timing, it’s kind of a little bit odd because we’re out of sync with the other teams,” he conceded. “We weren’t in the driver market during the kind of fairly critical last round. So certain drivers are tied up for certain periods.
“But there’s still a lot of extremely good talent around. So I don’t really see that necessarily as a limiting factor. Do we value experience? Yes, you can see that from how we’re putting the rest of the team together.
“There’s a lot of very experienced people within the management and operational side of the team as well. So, yes, that is important. But like ever, when you’re looking at driver selection, there’s just a whole bunch of things that go into the decision making. It’s ability, capability, experience, but also looking towards the future as well. I know it’s not the best answer in the world because it doesn’t give a steer of which direction we may be going in. But it’s the real answer — which is, that’s pretty much what we’re analyzing at the minute.”
The analysis has been ongoing for some time, but the lack of an official entry made it tough for Cadillac, and prospective drivers, to commit. Much like Lowdon now being able to operate in a public capacity, he also finally gets to talk with certainty to a list of potential drivers that he says is at least six names long.
“I think it’s important for us to talk to a number of potential candidates. Do we see experienced, capable drivers — in fact, very talented drivers — who currently aren’t on the grid? Yes, we do.
“We are going to be quite busy talking to a few people. My phone’s certainly been busy, that’s for sure. What’s a little bit difficult because of the situation that we’re in as a new team, the timeline isn’t as laid out as it normally is.
“It’s normally quite clear for all of us involved in driver negotiations. We’re out of sync with those discussions purely because of history. But there are easily half a dozen, if not more, candidates out there who offer extremely good credentials to be in Formula 1. Or to be in Formula 1 again.”
Based on the action shown so far, F1 and the FIA have now backed Cadillac’s credentials as well. Alongside a major preparation phase for the team, now it’s the time for talking, too.
