Cadillac entered the world of F1 this season fully aware of what a tough ask it is to be competitive in such a fast-moving sport. They expected to be at the back initially – and while that has proven largely true, the team have already shown real signs of progression.
The American team are reaping the benefits of their recent upgrade package bolted on in Austria, their first significant update to the car. While they have yet to get off the mark with points, both Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are starting to make progress in catching the teams around them.
But who are they fighting, and will they score this season?
The Qualifying gaps are closing
In Australia, Perez was over six tenths of a second behind Fernando Alonso in Qualifying, Bottas even further off the pace. That gap was nearer 1.4 seconds to the closest non-Aston Martin car.
The Cadillac duo have since overtaken the likes of Alonso and Lance Stroll, both in terms of one-lap pace and race pace, with Aston Martin’s own problems well documented.
But if you fast forward to Silverstone, Bottas out-qualified one Alpine, and was only half a second back from the slowest Haas of Esteban Ocon. No one can deny that Cadillac are now mixing it with the teams in the lower half of the midfield on merit.
They have yet to get a car into Q2 or SQ2 this season, but if they continue to develop in this direction, it remains a strong possibility that they might do so before the end of the year.
What about race pace?
Neither Perez nor Bottas have scored this season, although the former got agonisingly close in Monaco, initially being given P10 thanks to penalties for others before Perez himself picked up a time penalty.
Some of their finishing slots have been flattered by retirements from further up the order, with Bottas boasting a 13th place finish in China, while Perez has finished 14th on two occasions. But it is their race pace that is truly making a difference.
The late Safety Car in the British Grand Prix artificially closed the gaps in the pack and their finishing times, but before that the Cadillacs were fighting hard with Haas and Williams for position.
And considering Perez finished three laps down in the season opener in Australia, he was only one lap down in China, before finishing on the lead lap in Japan and again in Monaco, showing true progression.
The team have been fighting with the Haas cars of late in an all-American battle for bragging rights, with Williams another team often finding themselves running with the Cadillacs.
‘One of our best so far’ – Perez on the British Grand Prix
“Overall it was a good race and probably one of our best so far this season,” said Perez after his P14 at Silverstone. “We had a really good start and were fighting to hold the Haas behind.”
While Haas have undoubtedly lost their way, the fact Cadillac can compete with a car that finished fifth earlier this season in the hands of Ollie Bearman is impressive progress.
But more developments are coming – and Cadillac cannot afford to be left behind.
“There is some work to do, but we have to keep pushing and hopefully the next package of upgrades will bring us up. With just a little bit more speed we will really be in the mix with the midfield teams and then we can start to challenge a bit more,” Perez concluded.
“I think we have improved our pace overall,” added Bottas. “At times, especially on the hard tyre, it felt like we were a bit closer to the midfield while keeping a good margin from Aston throughout the whole race.”
Closer is one thing, beating the midfield to those last few points-paying positions is another.
Cadillac are no longer the back markers in 2026 – but they might still need some luck if they are to score points in what is an incredibly competitive midfield.
