Cadillac F1 boss: 'Nobody knows' who will be competitive in 2026

Cadillac Formula 1 team principal Graeme Lowdon doesn't know what to expect when the American outfit makes its debut at the Australian Grand Prix in March -- but said any team that projects to know what lies ahead in 2026 is "just making it up."

Cadillac is joining as the ‍11th team for ‌an F1 season that will bring a new wave of regulations. ⁠The team has signed a ‍pair of veteran drivers in Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, who drove the 2026 car during a filming day at Silverstone last week.

"It's difficult. Success in terms of the Melbourne race -- nobody ‍knows that, nobody knows where anybody's going to finish," Lowdon said at the Autosport Business Exchange ‍London, per Motorsport.

"If you ask any team principal at the minute where they think they'll be competitively, if they give you a relative answer, then they're just making it up. Nobody knows, which is why the fans tune in."

Cadillac is scheduled to unveil its 2026 F1 livery during a Super Bowl commercial on Feb. 8, ahead of preseason testing the following ‌week. The Australian Grand Prix is March 6-8, with plenty of work to ‍be done for all 11 teams between now and arriving in Melbourne.

"We look at the things that we can control ourselves," Lowdon said. "And obviously, we want to execute well as a team, ​but nobody really sees that externally. One of the things that we've often said is the first target for us is to earn the respect of the other teams. We respect them, rightly ​so. This is ‍a world championship. So that's the first target for us."

Lowdon was also pleased to ‌hear that Apple, which is taking over the United States broadcasting rights from ESPN this season, plans to expand its coverage into a weeklong experience. Apple's global head of sports Jim DeLorenzo said he ​sees "a ton of ‌room to grow in the United States for Formula 1," and that having major brands such as Cadillac and Ford involved in the sport "can only help."

"We want to contribute," Lowdon said. "It's so exciting what Apple are doing and the various plans that they have. I'm passionate ‌about motorsport, but I still think that we've got a massive opportunity to take this sport to more and more fans, and we want to contribute to that as well.

"So a key thing for us is we don't want fans ‍to follow what we're doing. We want them to join us."

Reuters