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Just over twelve months ago at the Vegas Grand Prix, the Cadillac racing team were ultimately awarded the official approval as Formula One’s newest participant for 2026. Building the team from the ground up has entailed a intense work rate that the team principal, Graeme Lowdon, has compared to the Apollo moon landing. As the sport descends on Las Vegas this weekend, the team know the clock is ticking.

The Countdown to Australia

At the season finale of the campaign to be hosted in the US, with around 100 days to go before they take to the track for the inaugural time in Australia at the first race of 2026, Cadillac have advanced rapidly but, in what must seem like a never-ending challenge, they are aware there will not be sufficient time.

The chief technical officer, Nick Chester, came aboard the newly formed team in the spring of 2023 shortly after it was formed, when the squad were without even an official entry. He has been at its center since then and enjoys a wry smile when considering the experience.

“There might be a short period looking back at what the team has achieved and say: ‘Wow, isn’t this fantastic what the team has created in a short three-year period,’” he notes. “And then the next minute you realize: ‘Yes, we still have a significant amount to do.’”

A One-of-a-Kind Opportunity

The CTO enjoyed success at the Renault team in Alonso's championship-winning seasons of 2005/2006 and was in control of technical direction at the new Mercedes-Benz Formula E team, but no other project has truly matched the challenge of introducing the iconic American Cadillac name, a factory team sponsored by the parent company, General Motors Corporation, into the pinnacle of motorsport.

“Building an grand prix team from scratch, when will you ever have the possibility to do that?” Chester remarks. “There's nothing comparable. In an established team you won't have the opportunity to change cultural approach.”

With each passing day that goes by minds are increasingly concentrated on the looming critical moment in Melbourne and expectations are being handled.

“It's reasonable to expect that any new team coming in is likely to start at the back but merely participating will be an feat in itself,” Graeme Lowdon noted earlier this year and while the CTO agreed with this sentiment he believed the organization had a reputation to build as well.

“The first thing we intend to prove is that we should be there,” he says. “So we show up and we function efficiently. We seek to prove that we’re a proper team performing the proper actions on the track. Once we prove that our credentials are solid, then we aim to demonstrate improvement from there on.”

Racing Talent and Hiring Effort

In August they recruited Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas as their racers for 2026, a pair distinguished for their vast knowledge in performing at the leading positions in two top-tier teams, Red Bull and the Mercedes team, and Bottas echoed the sentiment of fighting spirit.

“Certainly, we are pragmatic,” Bottas stated. “There’s going to be a huge amount of work to do, and we expect almost certainly a difficult start, because this is Formula One. But our goal isn't to stay at the back. I believe with this setup, with this group, these people, there’s no reason why we won't be able to progress rapidly up to the pace and enjoy some success.”

To that end staff acquisition has been in top gear, with employees now reaching more than 400 and planned to attain the target of 600 rapidly. Alongside their existing facility at the Silverstone circuit, the team are in the midst of completing an main base at Fishers, Indiana in the Indianapolis area and there is the GM works in North Carolina, where they are building the plant to produce the 2029 engine, planned for 2029 – for now they will operate with power from Ferrari – and the Toyota wind tunnel in Germany. It is a sophisticated organization, at odds with the direction in F1 for greater centralisation, and has led to the innovative team culture to which the CTO referred to.

Apollo Inspiration

“It’s highly modelled on the Apollo project,” remarked Lowdon just before the British GP in the summer. “We have a clear-eyed view, we know how challenging it is. The timelines, are incredibly tight. OK, it's not a space expedition, but it feels like it sometimes.”

So they have embraced, as opposed to the usual hierarchical system, a flat management structure similar to that of Nasa’s, where there were a range of specialist groups all focusing on different aspects of the program in a different facilities.

“When you must follow a protocol where someone has a problem and they report it to their supervisor, that manager communicates with a supervisor in another department, it travels back down, it’s super slow,” notes Nick Chester. “So we empower people to take charge. Moving away from managerial sign-off for all decisions is much smoother and more rapid.”

Upcoming Challenges

The success of this flexible methodology will be evaluated in the heat of competition next season and there is no little amount at stake for the sport, too. The Cadillac team have signed as their development driver the emerging American Colton Herta