Cadillac is making waves in the 2026 Formula 1 season with a substantial upgrade package set to debut at the Austrian Grand Prix. The American team, still seeking their first points of the season, is determined to close the gap to the midfield and prove their mettle on the challenging Red Bull Ring.
The team’s journey so far has been a mix of promise and setbacks. Sergio Perez came agonizingly close to scoring points in Monaco, only to be relegated to P15 due to a start infringement. Meanwhile, Valtteri Bottas has faced reliability issues including brake problems and overheating, which led to his retirement in Barcelona.
Cadillac’s ambitious upgrade package
Team Principal Graeme Lowdown expressed optimism about the team’s development trajectory. “The races now come along in rapid succession, and meeting that logistical element while improving our competitive performance is one of the key challenges of this part of the year,” he said. The upgrade package includes new sidepods and a floor designed to enhance the car’s aerodynamics and
“We are however pleased to be able to bring another substantial upgrade package this weekend. With new sidepods and floor it’s a significant amount of work and we hope that it will continue our trajectory of steadily catching-up to the midfield,” Lowdown added. The team is confident that these changes will help them make significant progress in Austria.
The challenges of the Red Bull Ring
The Red Bull Ring is known for its extreme elevation changes and high track temperatures, which will put Cadillac’s upgrades to the test. Both Perez and Bottas are optimistic about the new components and their potential to move closer to the midfield pack.
“Every race it feels that we’re making progress, and there was a lot of valuable learning in getting to the chequered flag in Barcelona,” said Perez. “The rate of development is very good, everyone back at the factory is going full speed to deliver new parts to the track, and the upgrade we have this weekend will hopefully provide another step.”
Bottas, who has a history of success in Austria with both Williams and Mercedes, added, “We are always learning from experiences to understand the issues, develop the car. We’re doing that, and making progress every week. I have great memories of this circuit, not just the victories in 2017 and 2026, but also my first front row start, and first F1 podium, which I had here in 2014.”
Focus on reliability and performance
While Cadillac aims to improve their performance, they are also keen to address the reliability issues that have plagued them in recent races. Bottas emphasized the importance of reaching the chequered flag, stating, “We’ve got some new upgrades, sidepods, bodywork, new floor, which should be in theory quite a good step forward but on top of that we’ve been working on the reliability issues we’ve had in the last two races and I think that’s still the priority as I haven’t finished the last two events.”
The team has made changes to improve cooling, which should help mitigate the overheating issues that have affected Bottas. “We’ve got a new bodywork here which gives us more opportunity for the cooling of the engine so I’m less worried about that. I think the big test here is the brakes,” Bottas said. “We’ve had issues in the last events with overheating so we’ve made some changes. We have more cooling options for the brakes but this is going to be the real test. If we can survive here, I think it means we can survive anywhere on this calendar.”
As Cadillac prepares to tackle the Red Bull Ring, all eyes are on the team’s ambitious upgrade package and their quest to secure their first points of the 2026 season.
