As Cadillac approached their debut season in Formula 1, they kept their expectations in check. Yes, they wanted to win – it’s the General Motors way – but the American car giants were respectful of their rivals and the quality of the championship they were entering. So, they accepted they would likely finish last in the series come the end of the season.
But any fears of being so slow that they wouldn’t reach the 107% cut-off time to make Qualifying, or get lapped several times in a Grand Prix, evaporated quickly. Instead Cadillac hit the ground running in testing and have never looked back to the point that, after just four Grands Prix, the black and white machines have proved strong enough to get in the fight at the back of the midfield.
Their cars have seen the chequered flag seven times in eight attempts – only Mercedes and Ferrari have a better record – and they have started all four Grands Prix with both cars (McLaren, Williams and Audi can’t say the same). There have been a fair few little reliability niggles but that is to be expected for a team doing everything from tightening a bolt to running a software system to building a car made up of millions of components for the first time.
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