Cadillac F1 team managing expectations with limitless ambition
SILVERSTONE, England - Cadillac principal Graeme Lowdon says Formula One's newest team have limitless ambition, and plenty of funds, but every expectation of being last when they debut next season.
The General Motors brand secured approval in March, after a 764-day entry process, to become the sport's 11th team and are racing against time to be ready.
Testing starts in Barcelona on January 26, with free practice for the 2026 season-opener in Melbourne on March 6.
No drivers are signed yet, despite regular reports of familiar names set to join and the usual suspects in the frame, but the focus is on more fundamental issues.
A recent tour of the team's Silverstone facility revealed a quiet sense of purpose, and the deep pockets behind the operation.
"You will not see this team over-promising in any way," Lowdon told reporters.
"But we do want to convey the fact that the ambitions are really limitless, as they should be."
The team are also backed by TWG Global, whose CEO Mark Walter has an estimated net worth of $12.5 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Walter's ownership interests include MLB's Los Angeles Dodgers, Premier League soccer side Chelsea and a soon to be acquired majority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers NBA basketball franchise.
LONG ROAD
Despite that, there is a long road ahead for a team that will start with Ferrari engines but plan to make their own eventually.
Lowdon, whose U.S.-owned rivals Haas are in their 10th season, said he presents the situation to shareholders with a question: "Can you imagine if you've owned a Formula One team for 10 years and then another team rocks up and beats you? You would be apoplectic.
"You have to assume that any new team coming in is going to be last. Otherwise, what's gone wrong somewhere else? ... We're trying to be as competitive as we possibly can but We're realistic. We know how difficult it is.
"We're happy with our progress, but we just don't know. Other than if we beat someone then someone's going to be angry."
Cadillac reckon on having 600 people by next season, many recruited from rival teams, and say they are already two thirds of the way there and no longer even the smallest outfit.
Although approval came only in March, preparations started long before.
Wind tunnel work has been ongoing since the middle of last year and the first car floor was delivered in January. Roll hoop testing took place in May and a prototype steering wheel was also ready by then.
"We've already issued somewhere in the region of 6,000 drawings. We've made 10,000 components already while we've been kind of quiet," said Lowdon.
"If you just wait until you get the entry and then start doing everything that we've been doing, you time out. It becomes an impossible task."
Cadillac have sites on two continents -- a headquarters under construction in Indianapolis, manufacturing facilities in North Carolina and Michigan and a design and logistics base at Silverstone.
Lowdon, a previous CEO of the defunct Virgin and Marussia teams, said a different management approach was needed and he had "leaned heavily" on the structure used by the U.S. space programme in the 1960s and 70s.
"We need an engineer here (in Britain) talking to an engineer in Charlotte and another one in Warren, Michigan, or eventually in Fishers (Indiana). So we've looked to have a very, very flat management structure," he said.
"It's highly modelled on the Apollo project ... OK, we're not putting a man on the moon, but it feels like it sometimes." REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
27 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Spain coach Tome upbeat about Bonmati's fitness
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Final - Arsenal v FC Barcelona - Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal - May 24, 2025 FC Barcelona's Aitana Bonmati looks dejected after the match REUTERS/Pedro Nunes TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY Spain coach Montse Tome said Aitana Bonmati's recovery was progressing positively but stressed that health remains the priority, as the world champions prepare to face Portugal in their women's European Championship opener on Thursday. Bonmati, the Ballon d'Or winner for the past two years, rejoined the squad on Monday after being discharged from hospital following a bout of viral meningitis. "You saw a bit of the training, I think about 15 minutes, but she was working completely separately, and her progress is very positive," Tome told a press conference on Wednesday. 'As for today's training, she will already be able to do some exercises with the team. She's so eager — we have to hold her back a bit — but according to the medical staff, her progress is positive. Health comes first, and she's been able to complete all the tasks required." Barcelona midfielder Bonmati missed Spain's 3-1 win over Japan last week, casting doubt over her availability for Thursday's Group B clash in Zurich. Midfielder Patricia Guijarro said Bonmati's return had lifted the team's spirits. "She's euphoric, happy, and of course, we'll see her tomorrow and give her a big hug. Above all, she's happy to be here," Guijarro said. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Singapore and Cambodia to expand collaboration in renewable energy, carbon markets and agri-trade Singapore From camping to mentorship, Singapore scouts mark 115th anniversary of the youth movement Singapore Ong Beng Seng's court hearing rescheduled one day before he was expected to plead guilty World Sean 'Diddy' Combs convicted on prostitution counts but cleared of more serious charges Singapore ByteDance food poisoning: Catering firm convicted after cockroach infestation found on premises Singapore Teen, 17, to be charged with allegedly trespassing on MRT tracks Singapore Granddaughter of Hin Leong founder O.K. Lim fails to keep 3 insurance policies from creditors' reach Singapore Man on trial for raping drunken woman after offering to drive her and her friend home Spain, who won their first World Cup title last year, are among the favourites at Euro 2025. Bonmati has scored 30 goals in 78 appearances for Spain, and was a key player in their 2023 World Cup victory. REUTERS
Straits Times
39 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Keys stays on course for rare Australian Open-Wimbledon double
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Wimbledon - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, London, Britain - July 2, 2025 Madison Keys of the U.S. in action during her second round match against Serbia's Olga Danilovic REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File Photo LONDON - There is nothing flashy about Madison Keys, but she knows how to get the job done and that priceless quality was on display as she eased past Olga Danilovic 6-4 6-2 on Wednesday to reach the Wimbledon third round. The Australian Open champion is on the hunt for further Grand Slam glory at the All England Club and could become the first woman since the great Serena Williams to win those two majors in the same season. Yet whereas Williams' ferocious weapons were clear for all to see, Keys is more the model of consistency. She has a big forehand and serve, but a potent part of her arsenal is being able to step up when it matters most. The 37th-ranked Danilovic put up a brave fight, which included saving five break points in one game in the second set, but Keys' consistency meant she never looked like causing an upset. On paper, the numbers were fairly even. The winners' count was 19-15 in Keys' favour while Danilovic made marginally more unforced errors - but Keys broke her opponent four times and lost her own serve once. After a nervy opener when she beat Romania's Elena-Gabriela Ruse in three sets, this was far more comfortable for the American - and with rain returning to Wimbledon after scorching temperatures on the first two days, Keys was much happier. "I definitely felt a little more comfortable today, it's the cloudy rainy England we know and love so I felt a little more normal," she said. "I knew that she could play really great tennis, I really just wanted to get a lead and run with it." Next up for Keys is a match against Germany's Laura Siegmund, who has already earned her best result at Wimbledon by reaching the third round. REUTERS
Straits Times
40 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Military aid increasingly focuses on boosting Ukraine's defence industry
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: The sign in front of the main entrance of the United States Army's European headquarters, Lucius D. Clay barracks, is pictured in Wiesbaden's Erbenheim district July 18, 2013. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach(/File Photo WIESBADEN, Germany - Fenced off behind barbed wire, about 350 soldiers from 31 countries including Ukrainians work in a hangar and air-conditioned green tents at a U.S. military base in Germany. Their job at the Clay Barracks in Wiesbaden is to match Kyiv's needs in terms of weapons, equipment and training with offers received from donor countries in NATO and outside the Western alliance as Russia's war in Ukraine drags on. Six months after NATO set up a command centre at the base to coordinate military aid for Ukraine, military assistance for Kyiv is evolving, especially when it comes to drone production. After Russia's invasion in 2022, NATO states provided support for Kyiv's military effort largely by depleting their own inventories and Ukraine was heavily dependent on Western defence firms. Military aid today is increasingly shifting towards bolstering Kyiv's defence industry, Major General Maik Keller, deputy commander of NATO's Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), told Reuters at the mission's headquarters in Wiesbaden. "Now, we need to change our focus," Keller said in an interview at Clay Barracks. He said Ukraine had shown creativity, and praised the speed of its innovation, production and certification processes. The manufacture of drones was an area where NATO states could learn and even eventually buy weapons from Kyiv, he said. "Defence procurement is not a one-way street. Looking at drones, there is certainly a lot that we might want to buy from Ukraine, though, for now, I believe they need their entire output themselves," Keller said. NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Admiral Keith Blount, also says Western allies may learn a lot from Ukraine, in particular on autonomous weapons such as drones. "We're learning about power of autonomy in a way that we always imagined was the future, but we are seeing it accelerated perhaps even faster than any of us could have imagined", Blount told Reuters while visiting NSATU's headquarters. He was referring to the use of drones on the sea, beneath the sea and on the ground as well as in the air. "That has been logarithmic, really, in the pace of adoption and actually the ability for Ukraine not just to learn how to use them, but learn how to make them, which has been fascinating," he said. PRESSING NEEDS Military assistance to Ukraine is evolving as European allies and Canada prepare to increase defence spending amid concerns over Russia's military ambitions and following demands by U.S. President Donald Trump. The companies that are producing arms for use by Ukraine will also be needed by NATO members to increase their own weapons stocks, Keller said. Keller said Ukraine's most pressing needs were air defence systems, ammunition and anti-tank mines to hold territory without tying down too many troops in the war with Russia. NSATU was established partly to make Western military aid less dependent on the United States, whose commitment to Ukraine under Trump has been called into question. A decision by Washington to halt some weapons shipments to Kyiv has underlined those concerns, prompting new concerns in Ukraine on Wednesday about its ability to defend itself. The United States, however, provides NSATU's commander and about 9% of its personnel in Wiesbaden. Most supplies are shipped to Ukraine through a NSATU hub in Poland, which NATO says sends in 18,000 tons each month, and a second hub is being established in Romania. Keller said he expected military aid channelled by NSATU to remain at least steady for now but that this depended on what political decisions were taken. Asked whether NSATU would be capable of sustaining Ukraine's resistance should the U.S. drop out, he said: "Yes." He also cautioned, however, that "Europe and Canada would be hard pressed" to replace some critical capabilities such as satellite surveillance although he made clear NSATU itself was not making use of satellite imagery. REUTERS
