Sergio Perez and Valteri Bottas signed by Cadillac for the American team's Formula 1 debut in 2026

For its Formula 1 debut, Cadillac, a brand owned by General Motors, has decided to focus on experience. The American manufacturer will enter the F1 arena in 2026 as the eleventh team on the grid and will rely on two veteran drivers.

On Tuesday, August 26, the signings of Valteri Bottas and Sergio Perez were formalized. The Finn will turn 36 on August 28, while the Mexican will celebrate his ^36th birthday on January 26, 2026. Between them, the former Mercedes and Red Bull drivers—where they long served as second drivers behind stars Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen—have a combined total of 527 F1 starts.

Bottas has won ten times, including victories in Russia in 2017, Australia and the United States in 2019, and most recently in Turkey in 2021. Perez has won six times: the first time in 2020 at the Bahrain Grand Prix, before shining in Monaco in 2022, and for the last time in Azerbaijan in 2023.

The two new teammates have each previously finished second in the Drivers' Championship. Valteri Bottas did so in 2019 and 2020, finishing second both times behind Hamilton. Sergio Perez finished second in 2023, beaten by Verstappen.

"We believe their experience, leadership and technical expertise are exactly what we need ," said Dan Towriss, CEO of Cadillac. "It's the perfect combination, the right drivers at the right time, and we are very humbled by the confidence they have placed in us."

Cadillac's senior manager, British Graeme Lowdon, led the selection process, narrowing down the number of credible candidates to three or four from a list of twelve interested candidates.

Sergio Perez has been without a ride since Red Bull dropped his contract at the end of the 2024 season. Valteri Bottas is still employed by Mercedes as a reserve driver. But the Finn's last season in F1 was a tough one at Saube, for which he failed to score any points in 2024.

Aside from their undeniable experience, both drivers have other assets. Perez is backed by numerous and extremely wealthy sponsors. "The Mexican market is very important to General Motors ," General Motors CEO Mark Reuss made no secret of it. " We sell a lot of cars in Mexico, and the fans there are very enthusiastic. These are secondary benefits."

Bottas is a great communicator, well-liked by fans on social media, where he likes to play up his friendly personality and his faux-nerdy look. This Tuesday, he put himself in the spotlight on his Instagram account with a montage of himself in a suit, surfing, a beer in one hand and the American flag in the other.