The grid just got a little more crowded.
Formula 1 and General Motors have reached an agreement for the automaker to join the world’s most prestigious racing championship starting in 2026. The new outfit will likely be branded Cadillac and will be the competition’s 11th team.
F1 has been at 10 teams since the 2017 season and that looked to be the way things were going to stay for the foreseeable future as recently as the beginning of this year. In January, the competition’s owner, Colarado-based Liberty Media, turned down a bid by Andretti Global and GM to join the grid, saying it had no plans to expand until at least 2028. That decision led to much grumbling, including a bi-partisan congressional request this spring for an explanation as to why an American team was being excluded from the sport.
A preview of Cadillac’s first Formula 1 race car
Cadillac
A lot has changed since then, though. In September, Michael Andretti—who’d called the sport and its teams “greedy” for past resistance to the proposal—stepped down from his role leading Andretti Global, according to the Associated Press. This cleared the way for the team to carry the Cadillac name, though it will be run by Andretti Global’s new majority owners, Dan Towriss and Mark Walter. Mario Andretti, the legendary race car driver and Michael’s father, will also serve in an ambassadorial role for the team.
In its announcement of the deal, F1 said that it had “maintained a dialogue” with GM despite all the drama. It had previously voiced concerns that the team would be competitive right away, but says that the automaker had achieved “operational milestones” that show it is committed to the sport. Adding an American team to the grid could be huge for a sport already experiencing a popularity boom in the U.S., which is now home to three Grand Prix races. Despite this, ESPN reports that the Cadillac team will be based out of England.
“As the pinnacle of motorsports, F1 demands boundary-pushing innovation and excellence,” GM president Mark Reuss said in a statement. “It’s an honor for General Motors and Cadillac to join the world’s premier racing series, and we’re committed to competing with passion and integrity to elevate the sport for race fans around the world.”
Plenty still needs to be worked out before Cadillac starts racing in 2026. General Motors will eventually build the team’s powertrains, but the first units won’t be ready for its debut, and possibly not by 2027 either. That means Cadillac will need to reach a customer agreement with an existing manufacturer. The AP reports they will be provided by Ferrari during the team’s first two seasons.
Cadillac will also want to do more than just show up, especially since it is backed by one of the world’s largest automakers. The marque has little racing heritage and will be starting from scratch against ten other teams that—for the most part—know what they’re doing. It could take up to a decade of heavy investment and hiring the right people for Cadillac to even begin to show progress. We’ll have to wait and see if GM is willing to be that patient.
