Bottas and Perez given Cadillac hot seats

United States team prioritizing experience over American drivers

Cadillac played it safe with its first Formula One lineup, bypassing an American driver for series veterans Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez.

Neither driver has seats on the grid this season, but with a combined 16 wins and 527 starts between them, Bottas and Perez were the pragmatic choices to help build the Cadillac program, which is set to launch in 2026. The hires, announced Tuesday, bring years of F1 knowledge to Cadillac, a division of United States automotive giant General Motors that will become the 11th team on the grid in 2026.

"We believe their experience, their leadership and their technical acumen are really what we need," said Dan Towriss, CEO of the Cadillac F1 team and TWG Motorsports. "It's the right combination, the right drivers at the right time, and we're humbled by their belief in us and in this project."