Cadillac have announced their two drivers for their entry into Formula 1 in 2026.

F1’s newest team has hired the highly experienced duo of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas, both of whom left F1 at the end of last season.

Perez, who like Bottas will be 36 years old when the 2026 season commences, has been absent from this year’s grid after losing his seat at Red Bull at the end of 2024. Bottas was dropped by Sauber.

The pair have started 527 grands prix between them. Bottas has won 10 grands prix, all with Mercedes, while Perez took five wins for Red Bull and one for Racing Point.

2026 F1 drivers and teams

“Bottas and Checo bring the perfect balance of talent, maturity, and drive,” said Cadillac CEO Dan Towriss. “They’re not just accomplished racers, they’re builders, collaborators, and professionals who will help define what the Cadillac Formula 1 team stands for.”

“This moment marks more than just a line-up announcement,” he said. “It’s the beginning of a bold new chapter in American motorsport.”

Bottas made his F1 debut with Williams in 2013 and joined Mercedes four years later. He finished second to team mate Lewis Hamilton in 2019 and 2020, but was dropped at the end of the following season, when he slipped to third in the championship. He spent the last three seasons at Sauber (previously Alfa Romeo).

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Perez arrived in F1 two years before Bottas at Sauber, making a strong impression which convinced McLaren to hire him to replace the departing Hamilton for 2013. However Perez lasted only a year before being replaced by Kevin Magnussen.

He rebuilt his reputation at Force India, grabbing five podium finishes. In 2020, following the team’s rebranding as Racing Point, he scored a remarkable maiden grand prix victory in the Sakhir Grand Prix. Although the team had already decided to drop him at the end of the year, Red Bull picked him up for 2021.

Despite helping Red Bull and Verstappen win the drivers’ title in each of his four seasons with the team, Perez increasingly struggled to match the pace of his team mate and the gulf between the pair grew impossible to ignore in 2024. Although Red Bull chose to move on from Perez for 2025, his replacements – Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda – have struggled just as much for performance in Red Bull’s second car as Perez has.

Both Bottas and Perez have been without drives this year. Bottas returned to Mercedes as a reserve driver and has assisted the team’s rookie driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

View the current list of 2026 F1 drivers and teams

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