Cadillac will be the 11th team on the Formula 1 grid from 2026 – marking the first time in 10 years since the sport had 22 cars in competition.
Ever since Manor dropped out before the start of the 2017 season, there have been just 10 teams fighting it out at every event.
A shortage of seats for talented drivers and a desire for more action on the track has led fans to call for another team to be added for a while.
While Andretti were denied entry, instead under the Cadillac badge, the same operation has been permitted to join the grid from 2026 after some heavy investment, particularly in infrastructure.
Mario Andretti says Cadillac ‘talking’ to Ferrari about F1 engines
One of the biggest advantages that Cadillac has currently is that they’re able to work on their car for 2026 already – using a Toyota wind tunnel.
None of their new competitors can do that until 2025, handing them a slight upper hand as they aim to hit the ground running.
There are still ties with the Andretti name and 1978 Formula 1 champion Mario Andretti has confirmed that they are in talks with Ferrari regarding an engine deal for 2026 and 2027 before General Motors can make their own from 2028.
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“That’s what we’re talking about,” he told NBC News. “That’s not definite yet, but that’s the objective. And that’s the preference.
“Even my history with Ferrari, and my relationship with Mr. Ferrari — all of it plays, plays tremendously. There are so many factors here that make a lot of sense. It will be best of all worlds.”
How difficult will it be to be competitive from day one?
The last team to enter the Formula 1 grid managed to stroll into the midfield almost immediately, and have stayed there ever since.
Haas were impressive in 2016 but owed a lot of their success to Ferrari not just because of their engines, but a technical collaboration too.
Cadillac doesn’t have that same luxury, but they do have the staff and infrastructure to design a lot themselves (apart from their engine before 2028).
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It means that their entry is more akin to that of the 2010 trio of HRT, Virgin and Lotus, who all had to design their cars themselves.
None of them lasted more than six years, and only one of them ever scored points in F1 – this is a far bigger, and better-backed operation though – so Cadillac has a good chance of being competitive from day one.
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