Cadillac’s first Formula 1 driver line-up is set to include at least one of Valtteri Bottas or Sergio Perez, with a deal for Bottas most likely to progress quickly.
The General Motors-owned team will join the F1 grid next year and is taking its time with a thorough evaluation of the drivers available. Cadillac’s driver line-up will be advised by team principal Graeme Lowdon and his immediate team, although ultimately the shared ownership of General Motors and TWG Motorsports will have the final say.
A strong Cadillac contingent, including TWG boss Dan Towriss, were at Silverstone last weekend, and conducted several discussions during and after the British Grand Prix.
Nothing is understood to have been signed yet with any driver, but TWG’s IndyCar team Andretti has an Iowa double-header this weekend, after which could come the first opportunity for more stakeholders to come together since the Silverstone visit and potentially even green-light a move for the first driver.
Cadillac’s most decorated options are race winners Bottas and Perez, who lost their F1 seats at Red Bull and Sauber respectively at the end of last year. Lowdon said recently “there's a very strong argument to say that a new team in its first year of racing would benefit hugely from people who are experienced”.
Both drivers are interested in the Cadillac project and talks have been held their representatives. Bottas, who is spending his 2025 as Mercedes’ reserve driver to keep himself actively involved in F1, has also had conversations himself.
He is understood to be extremely keen. Alpine has also enquired about Bottas's availability, as its team boss Flavio Briatore has considered he may be the solution to its own driver line-up dilemma, but Bottas appears to be more interested in exploring the Cadillac option more thoroughly and securing a long-term deal there.
Perez’s discussions were previously being conducted by his management, but he is understood to have now joined them in recently meeting Cadillac bosses face-to-face, although not at the British Grand Prix, as Perez is avoiding the F1 paddock for now.
A Bottas-Perez combination remains possible and would give Cadillac extensive experience of top F1 teams to draw from, although pairing one of them with a younger driver who has raced in F1 already is another option - while fielding a rookie is not preferred.
And while no timeline has been set on announcing its plans, there is a preference to lock one driver down sooner and then take more time for the second seat to see how the driver market evolves.
This could mean one deal - most likely with Bottas, given that is understood to be straightforward if Cadillac chooses him - is official by as early as the F1 summer break in August.
Waiting to proceed with the second driver could be a shrewd move for Cadillac given Perez, for example, would still be available, but it would keep the door open for a left-field, experienced option like Yuki Tsunoda, whose availability may change by the end of the year.
The Red Bull driver’s priority and focus is on turning his season around and retaining that drive longer-term, and he currently has Red Bull’s full support.
But he is known to need to have potential alternatives in mind just in case, and is considered a good candidate.
Cadillac is realistic about the challenges it faces entering F1 next year, when it is likely to have the slowest car and face a steep learning curve. It therefore wants to pick a driver that can support that process and be a team player even if the situation gets very difficult, not end up focusing on their own interests and distancing themselves from the team’s performance.
The value of drivers who are not currently racing in F1 but are still in the paddock and actively engaged with teams is another factor.
This is potentially a hurdle for Perez, who has stayed out of F1 since being paid off by Red Bull at the end of last season, but he at least has extensive experience and raced very recently. It is a boost for the likes of Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, who like Bottas found a reserve role (at Ferrari) after Sauber dropped him.
Zhou’s candidacy is further boosted by taking part in Ferrari’s 2026 tyre testing and Ferrari being Cadillac’s engine supplier for the next few years. Lowdon was involved in Zhou’s management in the past but there is no active or direct affiliation at present.
While the Cadillac team is interested in Zhou, it is unclear whether team shareholders - especially on the GM side - would go ahead with a Chinese driver given the geopolitical situation between the US and China.
Those circumstances might also change with time. And as already mentioned Cadillac bosses have regularly said they are willing to wait in order to make the right decision. That is why the team is not rushing a decision and talks have been held with various drivers or their representatives, to be as thorough as possible.
“We're out of sync with the other teams, which kind of makes it easier,” Lowdon told The Race last month.
“It means we can spend a bit more time understanding the attributes that a particular driver can bring and measuring them against what we need.
“Normally you're in a competitive environment, sometimes you can't take long to make a decision, because someone will go to another team.
“When we're not in that position, there's a good list of very, very capable drivers that we can interact with and put a team together with. So we're lucky from that one point of view.”
The desire for some experience might count against others who have held talks of some kind or another with the Cadillac hierarchy.
Ex-Alpine driver Jack Doohan, who is acting as its reserve after being dropped just six races into the 2025 season, has come onto Cadillac’s radar as a potential option and is known to be weighing up what options he might have given Alpine does not look interested in putting him back in the seat that Franco Colapinto took.
Aston Martin reserve driver and 2022 Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich is another contender.
He is also well known to the Cadillac organisation as he has dovetailed his F1 work with a part-time role in its top-level sportscar programme, racing the Cadillac Hypercar at the Daytona and Le Mans 24 Hours.
Aston Martin has no intention of giving Drugovich a race seat, and his F1 opportunities are limited there, so it is likely he would be let go if a drive was on the table.
Alpine reserve driver Paul Aron has also been seen having talks with Cadillac team leadership, although like Drugovich he is a complete rookie, and has ties to Alpine that could be harder to break.
