Just over a full year in the past at the Vegas Grand Prix, Cadillac were at last awarded the green light as Formula One’s most recent participant for the 2026 season. Establishing the organization from scratch has entailed a hectic work rate that the team principal, Graeme Lowdon, has compared to the Apollo program. As Formula One arrives on Vegas this race weekend, Cadillac know the deadline is approaching.
The Race Against Time to Melbourne
At the final race of the campaign to be hosted in the US, with approximately a hundred days to go before they take to the track for the inaugural time in Melbourne at the 2026 opener, Cadillac have made significant progress but, in what must seem like a never-ending challenge, they are cognizant there will never be sufficient time.
The CTO, Nick Chester, joined the newly formed operation in the spring of 2023 not long after it was formed, when the squad were without even an confirmed place. He has been at its heart ever since and has a knowing grin when thinking about the journey.
“You might get a short period looking back at what you’ve done and say: ‘Incredible, what an achievement what we’ve done in a short three-year period,’” he says. “Then the next minute you consider: ‘Yes, there is still quite a lot to do.’”
A Unique Challenge
Nick Chester achieved victories at Renault in Fernando Alonso’s championship-winning years of 2005/2006 and was in command of technical development at the recently formed Mercedes Formula E team, but nothing has been quite like the task of bringing the iconic American Cadillac marque, a works entry sponsored by the parent company, GM, into Formula One.
“Creating an grand prix team from the ground up, when will you ever have the possibility to do that?” he observes. “It is like nothing else. In an well-set team you won't have the possibility to transform team culture.”
With each passing day that elapses focus are more focused on the looming moment of truth in the Australian GP and expectations are being set realistically.
“One must presume that any incoming team joining the grid is likely to start at the back but simply getting on to the grid will be an feat in itself,” the team principal stated this year and while the CTO echoed this he felt the team had a point to prove as well.
“The initial objective we aim to demonstrate is that we deserve to be there,” he says. “So that we show up and we function efficiently. We want to show that this is a professional operation doing the correct procedures on the circuit. When we have demonstrated that our credentials are solid, then we aim to demonstrate progression subsequently.”
Pilot Selection and Team Building Drive
In late summer they contracted Checo Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their pilots for the 2026 season, a duo remarkable for their priceless expertise in performing at the sharp end in two of the sport’s biggest teams, Red Bull and Mercedes-AMG, and Bottas reflected the sentiment of determined optimism.
“Of course, we’re realistic,” Bottas stated. “There’s going to be a huge amount of work to do, and it’s going to be most likely a tough opening, because it's the top level of motorsport. But we’re not there to finish last. I believe with this setup, with this group, these people, it's entirely possible we won't be able to progress rapidly to a competitive level and enjoy some success.”
To that end staff acquisition has been in overdrive, with personnel now reaching in excess of 400 and intended to reach the objective of 600 members rapidly. Complementing their existing facility at the Silverstone circuit, the organization are in the process of building an HQ at Fishers in the Indianapolis area and there is the GM works in Charlotte, North Carolina, where they are building the center to manufacture the power unit, scheduled for 2029 – for now they will use Ferrari power units – and the Toyota's wind tunnel in Cologne. It is a sophisticated structure, at odds with the movement in Formula One for more centralization, and has prompted the innovative team culture to which Nick Chester alluded.
Space Mission Model
“It's closely based on the Apollo program,” remarked Graeme Lowdon ahead of the British Grand Prix in July. “We are pragmatic, we recognize how tough it is. The deadlines, are incredibly tight. OK, we’re not putting a man on the moon, but it can seem that way.”
So they have embraced, rather than the usual hierarchical system, a flat management structure comparable to that of Nasa’s, where there were a range of specialist groups all tackling distinct elements of the project in a variety of locations.
“When you must follow a procedure where someone has a problem and they raise it up to their supervisor, that supervisor communicates with a supervisor in another department, it travels back down, it becomes inefficient,” notes the CTO. “Therefore we enable team members to handle things directly. Avoiding hierarchical consent for each action is far more efficient and more rapid.”
What Lies Ahead
The success of this nimble approach will be proven in the pressure of racing when the season begins and there is a considerable amount riding on this for the sport, too. The Cadillac team have recruited as their development driver the 25-year-old American Colton Herta
