Method 1’s driver marketplace for 2026 is anticipated to be loads much less vigorous than the seat-swapping antics that spanned everything of final season, as lots of the championship’s key gamers are locked in for the arrival of F1’s new regulatory overhaul.
That mentioned, there’s one key vacation spot that a lot of these overlooked within the chilly for 2025 could select to pursue, as Cadillac’s welcome to the grid opens up an additional two seats. Not solely is it an opportunity for the seat-less speedsters to reignite their F1 careers, but additionally gives alternatives for brand spanking new drivers to write down their very own names in historical past – for higher or for worse.
Which drivers take advantage of compelling circumstances for Basic Motors to mull over for its maiden F1 voyage? Our writers have solid their eye over the most definitely candidates – and even provided their very own ideas for a Caddy drive…
Why Cadillac ought to choose Bottas – Alex Kalinauckas
Cadillac’s F1 arrival in 2026 can be notably totally different from that of Audi – in that the GM model is ranging from scratch moderately than shopping for an present workforce. It is due to this fact going to wish skilled personnel that bit extra, with this being much more necessary for at the least one in every of its two most important workers: its first F1 drivers.
Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Workforce KICK Sauber
Photograph by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Pictures
The thought of Cadillac bringing an American driver into F1 is as delightfully romantic because it’s shrewd enterprise sense. However given even a high line IndyCar peddler equivalent to Colton Herta (extra on that later) would due to this fact be a class rookie, their team-mate goes to wish baggage of F1 expertise alongside confirmed pace and a monitor file of serving to a workforce develop on the technical entrance.
Step ahead, Valtteri Bottas.
The Finn can really feel considerably aggrieved to have dropped off the sphere in 2025 – though the junior profession of his alternative at Sauber, Gabriel Bortoleto, at the least matches that in title phrases of Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Lando Norris. The Brazilian definitely deserves a crack on the high degree.
However Bottas can provide Cadillac calm and detailed efforts to get its first F1 automotive up to the mark. He is conversant in the Ferrari engine that the US squad will use for at the least its first two years and will not rock the boat if early outcomes show arduous to come back by.
Bottas can be significantly fast, even very deep into his profession. He pushed Lewis Hamilton far tougher over one lap throughout their time as Mercedes team-mates than he is given credit score for and he ended 2024 with a 20-3 qualifying file towards Zhou Guanyu (from all counting classes). This stands alongside Max Verstappen’s 21-3 towards Sergio Perez and Lando Norris going 20-4 versus Oscar Piastri.
Not serving to issues for Bottas is how wanting on the averages of every driver’s 10 quickest laps in each race final 12 months (the place they did full that whole and with necessary caveats round technique and incidents in thoughts), he got here out backside of the pile in an evaluation I just lately performed for Autosport journal. Automotive efficiency has a lot to do with such a consequence, however Zhou’s common was a shock 0.238s higher.
However even when he is not fairly on the degree he as soon as was, Bottas’s power and character wouldn’t simply been a boon to the burgeoning Cadillac squad, however F1 general.
Now he is bought a 12 months on the sidelines however nonetheless with a job to play again at Mercedes as reserve driver, he is bought to make the case on to Graeme Lowdon and co. Nicely, it labored for Nico Hulkenberg with Gunther Steiner in 2022…
Perez is an effective choice, if he nonetheless has the drive – Ben Vinel
Sergio Perez admittedly can be an odd alternative for Cadillac following his dismal 2024 season – such a catastrophic marketing campaign that Pink Bull put an early finish to its contract with the Mexican. An odd alternative, at first sight.
Sergio Perez, Pink Bull Racing
Photograph by: Pink Bull Content material Pool
There isn’t any doubt that Perez’s efficiency final 12 months is just not consultant of what he can do as a driver. Typically issues simply will not click on anymore for one cause or one other, be it technical or psychological. And that is how a number of high-profile partnerships led to F1’s historical past, like Sebastian Vettel with Ferrari in 2020.
Prior to now, Perez proved that he was a constant driver with flashes of brilliance. In all probability not blindingly fast to the extent that he may very well be a world champion, however stable sufficient that he was an excellent asset to any midfield workforce. And now, he is one of many high eight F1 drivers ever by way of grands prix begins – no fewer than 281.
The 34-year-old veteran might due to this fact be a perfect choose for Cadillac to construct its new F1 workforce round. From a business perspective, Perez’s sponsors can solely be a optimistic, and he might increase Basic Motors’ gross sales in Mexico. GM bought some 184,000 automobiles – together with round a thousand Cadillacs – within the Central American nation in 2023. That is simply 3% of its worldwide output.
What stays to be seen is whether or not Perez stays motivated sufficient to place his head down and dedicate himself to such a serious venture.
Zhou makes monetary sense – Stuart Codling
This might be a no brainer suggestion even when newly appointed Cadillac F1 workforce principal wasn’t Zhou Guanyu’s supervisor. Enlightened self-interest from the highest desk is hardly new in F1. Zak Brown is concerned in Lando Norris’s administration and this has deprived McLaren not one jot.
Zhou Guanyu, Stake F1 Workforce KICK Sauber
Photograph by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Pictures
Zhou has the required expertise with ground-effect F1 equipment and he’s, reportedly, diligent, skilled and hard-working within the storage. Whereas his outcomes at Sauber have provided trigger for celebration solely not often, the vehicles have seldom been good throughout his tenure. Notably, he scored the workforce’s first factors final 12 months as soon as it lastly utilized an replace which added efficiency.
Even for those who’re not a fan, the business logic is smart. Granted, the doubtless actuality of the workforce’s first 12 months or two can be extra a case of “Flip up on Sunday, hope to promote on Monday”, however Zhou is an eminently marketable determine in his residence nation.
Presently, GM sells extra Cadillacs in China than it does within the US, however general GM’s market share is declining and its joint-venture operations there – together with however not restricted to the one which builds Cadillac fashions regionally – misplaced $200 million in 2023, probably the most just lately revealed set of figures.
Going the American manner with Herta – Jake Boxall-Legge
Cadillac won’t essentially have a stipulation that it must run an American driver in its opening foray into F1. Expertise is definitely the precedence for one of many seats however, for sheer advertising worth and the chance to cement itself as a bonafide, all-American entry (based mostly within the UK and underpinned by an Italian powerplant), a US-based driver can be an ideal asset. And, certainly, Colton Herta has to spearhead that checklist.
Colton Herta, Andretti International w/ Curb-Agajanian Honda
Photograph by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Pictures
Herta’s been inside touching distance of F1 earlier than; let’s not overlook that it was merely superlicence factors that precluded him from an AlphaTauri drive…okay, it is a pretty hefty hurdle, however the talks have been nonetheless superior. The story goes that AlphaTauri was unwilling to let Pierre Gasly go away for Alpine until it might safe Herta’s companies – after all, the next change to safe Nyck de Vries’ companies allowed Gasly to maneuver to pastures new.
This time, Herta’s loads nearer to the golden 40 superlicence factors. Ending second in final 12 months’s IndyCar standings put Herta on 32 factors general – he’d ‘simply’ want to complete fourth on this 12 months’s championship to hit the mark.
Finally, an important query issues efficiency. Herta is claimed to have been spectacular when testing for McLaren in 2022, sufficient for AlphaTauri to wish to safe his companies for the next 12 months. Let’s not overlook that he was a detailed competitor of Lando Norris’s in MSA F4, main then-boss Trevor Carlin to extol the American’s virtues throughout the British junior scene. Herta would wish time to adapt, and Cadillac may want to think about a try-before-you-buy method – ie. throw cash at one other workforce to run him in an FP1 session or ring-fence some TPC time to see if he is as much as scratch in F1.
On expertise, he has what it takes to succeed. Whether or not Herta would wish to commerce his soft IndyCar drive for F1’s piranha pit is one other matter totally…
Palou must be thought of – Filip Cleeren
I clearly perceive the household hyperlinks and the will for Cadillac to place an American driver in one in every of its vehicles. But when the American producer goes to show in the direction of IndyCar to seek out one in every of its recruits, then why not take one of the best driver accessible? Alex Palou has had an unbelievable IndyCar profession to this point, taking simply 5 seasons to notch up three drivers’ titles, and 12 wins.
Champion Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Photograph by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Pictures
At Ganassi, he has in contrast favourably to Scott Dixon, one of the best driver of his technology and nonetheless thought of the gold commonplace in IndyCar racing, and his consistency specifically has been excellent, accumulating 30 podiums over the 81 races he has contested, which included a rookie season with minnow Dale Coyne.
Palou remains to be chasing the elusive Indy 500 win, however apart from that the Spaniard has little to show in North America and at 27 he’s nonetheless younger sufficient to offer F1 a good crack. He has by no means made any secret of his ambitions to take action, having develop into embroiled in a contract dispute with Ganassi and McLaren in 2022 as he tried to pressure a transfer to the papaya workforce, which appeared in a position to provide him a path in the direction of an F1 program sooner or later. He then walked away from his McLaren deal when he misplaced religion that he would be capable of land an F1 seat with the workforce.
Palou has since reconciled with Ganassi and vowed to maintain attempting to win extra IndyCar championships, and clinching that all-important Indy 500, with the workforce. But when an F1 seat is on the desk once more – not a imprecise chance of 1 sooner or later, however a concrete, assured 2026 berth – why would not he at the least contemplate it?
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