Last Updated on December 14 2024, 11:18 am
The path for the eleventh Formula One team to join the grid has been long and arduous. Cadillac finally got the green light from Liberty Media as the 2024 season drew to a close after 18 months of filing their application with the FIA.
Initially the proposal was submitted by Andretti Global but Michael Andretti had upset key individuals in the paddock. This was evidence this year in Miami when Liberty Media’s CEO, Greg Maffei, accosted Mario Andretti in Miami telling him in front of F1 supremo Stefano Domenicali, “Mario, I want to tell you that I will do everything in my power to see that Michael never enters Formula 1,’” Andretti was reported to have revealed by NBC.
A change of team name, Michael stepping aside and hey presto, Cadillac are now confirmed as an F1 entrant for 2026. Yet the value of the global American car manufacturer was said to be them bringing a power unit to F1, which would not be ready before 2028 so in the interim they will be powered by Ferrari.
New F1 engines will be short lived
With the shelf life of the new breed of F1 power units coming in 2026 expected to be far shorter than the current twelve years of the current powertrains, in reality Cadillac may never build one of the 2026 generation of F1 engines.
On the publication of the specifications of the new breed of F1 power units in June, F1 supremo Stefano Domenicali revealed his dislike for the monster engines which add some 15-20% weight to the current crop of cars.
“My personal opinion is that it would be enough to run on climate-neutral fuel. But we had to take into account the wishes of the manufacturers. Developments have gone so fast that a decision today might be different from what it was two years ago. I am not an engineer, but I have to have a vision of what the sport will look like in the future. And I can imagine that with the next regulations, we can focus on sustainable fuel,” Domenicali revealed at the time in an interview with Auto Motor und Sport.
Cadillac will be well aware of the troubles suffered by Honda when they joined the F1 engine programme a year after the others had started. This saw the Japanese manufacturer in the wilderness from 2015 until Max Verstappen won the Austrian Grand Prix some four years later.
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Indycar star Colton Herta in the frame
Honda then announced they were withdrawing from Formula One and would not be entering a new power unit for the 2026 season. Red Bull were then forced to launch their own power unit development programme, something Christian Horner later admitted they would never have done had Honda agreed to continue with their supply.
The Cadillac entry is really Andretti in disguise, although the parties for now appear to have agreed to a name change. Andretti already had over two hundred people at their Silverstone base and it seems the threat of an investigation by the US Justice department into anti-competitive activity forced Formula One’s hand to allow the US based racing organisation into the exclusive global motorsport club.
With a brand new set of F1 car designs regulations arriving along with Cadillac, there is always the possibility that they could ace the conundrum set by the FIA and be competing for race wins and titles. This exciting prospect has led to a significant amount of speculation as to which drivers Andretti/Cadillac will recruit.
Mario Andretti, F1 champion in 1978 was recently named as one of the directors of the Cadillac team and he is known to favour a young hot shot Californian driver who currently competes for Andretti in the Indycar series. “From the beginning of this project, the team always looked at the prospect of Colton Herta to be one of the drivers,” Andretti told Motorsport.com.
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Ricciardo linked with Cadillac
“As far as I know, this is something we had not discussed lately because there’s time, that still remains a priority. I’m sure that’s the direction he would like to go. He trained there. He raced alongside the likes of, just to say one, Lando Norris, who is obviously very prominent now with McLaren. And so, he is from that era, if you will, still, young and vibrant and ready to go.”
Andretti then made it clear the team would need to balance the youth and speed of Herta with an experienced F1 team mate, preferably one with multiple grand prix victories. So when V-CARB dropped Daniel Ricciardo with six Grand Prix weekends remaining this year, he was quickly linked with the fledging US owned F1 team.
Ricciardo ticks the experience box with 257 grand prix starts and eight victories to his name, what would also make him an appealing option for the American squad is his huge popularity in the United States. AltphaTauri’s big relaunch by team title sponsor Visa Cash App was based I lots entirety around the figure of Daniel Ricciardo.
The loveable Aussie shot to fame in the USA with the arrival of the fly on the wall documentary series Drive to Survive and his antics such as riding a horse cowboy style down the pit lane in Austin Texas have earned him star status with the US based fans.
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Honey Badger has “no interest”
However, according to ESPN, sources with a close connection to Ricciardo have confirmed that Cadillac F1 have revealed Ricciardo holds “no interest” in returning to Formula 1 with the team anyway. The honey badger was unceremoniously ditched by V-CARB without the opportunity to say farewell after this year’s Singapore Grand Prix.
Daniel has remained out of the public eye since his departure from the Red Bull family, but his likeable global image is attracting no shortage of interest. Toyota Gazoo recently made it known they would ‘break the bank’ to lure Ricciardo into their fold where he could race in NASCAR and Australian V8’s while acting as a brand ambassador.
Ricciardo may yet be licking his wounds from the sudden exit from Formula One. With time on his side he may yet reconsider Cadillac’s offer given the rule changes may make the 2026 breed of F1 cars more to Daniel’s liking and his driving style.
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Battle rages for African GP
The battle to host F1’s African GP commences – For Formula One to claim it is a truly global sport many paddock observers believe it must soon hold a Grand Prix weekend on the continent of Africa. There was much talk last. Year of reviving the event once held in South Africa, although trouble with the promoter saw the Rainbow Nation’s government pull out of the deal.
Africa has a rich history of motorsport with rallying leading the way, but road racing began back in South Africa as early as in 1934, when the country hosted its first ever Grand Prix on the Prince George Circuit in Cape Province which attracted the top European drivers at the time including Bernd Rosemeyer, Richard “Dick” Seaman and the 1939 winner Luigi Villoresi.
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
