- The Cadillac Formula 1 Team completed its first laps in Formula 1 this weekend.
- The car completed its first run in an all-black livery with Sergio Perez behind the wheel at a pre-season promotional day.
- The new Cadillac team will reveal its livery on the 8th of February, a month before its debut at the Melbourne Grand Prix.
The Cadillac Formula 1 Team achieved a significant milestone in the weekend, as Sergio Perez completed the first-ever on-track laps for the new American team.
The team took to the historic Silverstone track during a pre-season promotional day as it continues preparations for its debut Formula 1 season. While the car ran entirely in black at Silverstone, the final 2026 team livery set to be revealed on Sunday, February 8, via a a globally televised broadcast.
According to the team, the laps were completed as part of a promotional filming day, serving the dual purpose of "gathering footage of the car on track and the opportunity to shake down the car to ensure all systems are working as expected in preparation for official pre-season testing."
Graeme Lowdon, Cadillac Formula 1 Team Principal, commented that the shakedown represented countless hours of hard work from everyone involved in the team, and showed the progress it was continuing to make in a short space of time.
"It’s been a great opportunity for the team to gel in a live garage environment, verify car systems and resolve any initial issues," said Lowdon.
"But it’s just the beginning of the road; we now turn our attention to pre-season testing in just a few weeks’ time, which will provide even more opportunity to learn."
Perez, returning to F1 following a year away said that “Today was really an amazing day. Everyone should feel incredibly proud to complete our first laps as a team."
"Each and every person has worked so hard to get to this moment and it was emotional to be part of motorsport history. We can, and should, all enjoy, but it’s absolutely fired me up for more. I just want to get back in and get mileage - this is just the start."
Perez was joined by the team's other driver, F1 veteran Valtteri Bottas, who will line up alongside him on the grid at the Melbourne Grand Prix on the 8th of March. Between them Perez and Bottas have 16 Grand Prix victories (6 for Perez and 10 for Bottas) and they are joined at the new team by China's first (and currently only) F1 driver Zhou Guanyu.
Zhou raced alongside Bottas at Alfa Romeo/Kick Sauber and picked up three points finishes between 2022 and 2024, after 20 podium finishes (including five wins) in three years in Formula 2 before that.
Backed by TWG Motorsports and General Motors, the Cadillac Formula 1 Team will be the 11th team in F1 and the first new entrant since 2016. It will use Ferrari powertrains as it ramps up its efforts before likely building its own engine in 2029, and will operate out of three US hubs in Indianapolis, Charlotte, North Carolina and Warren, Michigan, as well as a UK base in Silverstone.
