Cadillac Formula 1 team principal Graeme Lowden has given the first indication of how the team intends to select drivers for its debut next year.
He said the team entered by US carmaking giant General Motors will give serious consideration to running an American driver, but only if they prove competitive enough.“We’ll definitely select on merit,” Lowden told media including RaceFans today. “Formula 1’s not a playground. This is the pinnacle of world motorsport so, for sure, we need to select drivers on merit.”
The FIA and Formula 1 confirmed last week Cadillac will enter the championship in 2026. Although many drivers are already under contract for 2026, several multiple race winners lost their race seats last year.
Lowden acknowledged the speculation that the US team would prefer to have at least one driver from America. There are no US drivers on the grid at present.
“Personally, I see no reason why an American driver can’t be selected on merit,” he said. “It’s certainly something I think the fans would like to see and I see no reason why that can’t happen.”
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“Just because someone’s American doesn’t mean that they can’t be a good Formula 1 driver,” he added. “We’re not starting a team for the short-term.
“We will be looking at some form of academy programme. So looking forward, I see no reason why we won’t have American drivers in the team on merit.”
There are few American drivers with the necessary FIA superlicence points which would allow them to compete in F1. One of the few, Logan Sargeant, lost his drive with Williams in the middle of last year, and Lowden believes he is not looking to return to F1.
“Logan, from my understanding, is no longer involved in motorsport,” he said. “He’s an American but no we haven’t had any conversations with him.”
US IndyCar driver Colton Herta has been linked to the team before, and Cadillac’s consultant Mario Andretti has named him as a potential target. However his lack of superlicence points rules him out for the time being, Lowden acknowledged.
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“He doesn’t have the required number of super licence points and if that were to remain the case then that’s clearly an impediment for him. We can’t choose a driver that doesn’t have the points, that’s just the real world that we live in and we just have to take that into account.
“Does his lack of reaching this or lack of being at the threshold for the superlicence in any way affect his ability to drive a race car? No, he’s an incredibly talented driver and so, for sure, it’s not shock news that we would be looking to consider Colton alongside a whole bunch of other drivers as well.
“Certainly he’s not the only one actually in that situation, and he won’t be the last, where there’s some uncertainty due to superlicence points, But we just have to live with that, that’s the regulation, we just have to respect it.”
Another driver who lost his F1 race seat last year, Zhou Guanyu, has a connection to Lowden via his management team. Lowden praised Zhou’s performance but insisted he will not be given preferential treatment when it comes to selecting the team’s drivers.
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“Zhou has done an exceptionally good job under difficult circumstances over the last couple of years. What makes it actually quite useful for me is he doesn’t necessarily need to explain the background of his abilities because I’ve had a front row seat to see all that, so that’s a benefit.
“There’s the correct checks and balances in place, so there’s no favouritism in any particular direction towards him or any other driver that we may have involvement with, as you know we’ve been involved with other drivers on the grid as well.”
“We’re there to do a job so we’ll select drivers on merit,” he added. “There’s some really good ones out there, Zhou included. Now we’re actually able to actually engage and see what the best driver line-up will be for the team.”
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Jere (@jerejj)
10th March 2025, 18:13
Sargeant indeed isn’t even looking for a return since he stopped active racing altogether, & as Herta’s situation is difficult & motivation questionable, I wouldn’t rule out someone like Jak Crawford either.
Selecting drivers on merit is somewhat bad news for Perez because he hasn’t exactly given a strong justification on this front in the recent past, nor has Zhou barely either, & while Lowden may be his manager, the final say on driver matters ultimately goes to the team’s upper management.
El Pollo Loco
10th March 2025, 18:18
Americans don’t care about having an American driver. In fact, for most American fans F1’s entire appeal is its elite, Euro-centric/globe trotting image. They go to F1 for something different. Not because they want more of the same.
Would they be excited if an amazing American driver emerged in F1? Of course. Would they go to races because they had a Checo level driver in F1? Not a chance. No one here knows Logan Sargeant even exists.
Dex
10th March 2025, 18:52
Yeah, but doesn’t it help create an “American image” for the team? I don’t think anyone in US cares for Haas either, both for lack of success and… Well, there’s nothing American about it anyway.
Also, sometimes the management likes having a local guy, it doesn’t even have to be objective. I’m only thinking out loud btw, I don’t say that I’m right, or you’re wrong (especially about Sargeant doing nothing in terms of PR).
I suppose what matters the most is the commercial idea behind this project. If they want to promote Cadillac mostly in the US (nobody drives a Cadillac in EU), perhaps having a driver from there will make sense promotion-wise. I mean, someone from Europe, no matter how popular, won’t be very convincing when promoting this brand somewhere in Texas. Imagine Charles Leclerc being a face for Cadillac, or Max Verstappen. Maybe that works great, I don’t know, maybe they won’t think that’s ideal (especially since they can’t get such big names anyway).
El Pollo Loco
10th March 2025, 19:49
That’s just the thing. They don’t (or shouldn’t if they’re smart) want to create an American-centric image. A good share of American F1 fans like F1 because it’s the opposite of what they perceive as American motorsports. More importantly, Cadillac is a luxury brand that’s trying to attract an upmarket demo + desperately trying and failing to crack the demo that buys cars from BMW, MB, Audi, etc. (BMW/Merc dominate market share in the US luxury car market).
Many in this demo see the brand as something only old people and rich hicks get (this is obvious, but I got to see data/research too when I was doing PR for Infiniti and had access to Mintel’s auto sector reports (Mintel publishes really in-depth and expensive consumer market research). They see German luxury brands as chic, sporty and European (lol) which they think lends them a an air of refinement. So, the last thing that would convince this demo is seeing an American driver in an American race car team they’d probably assume drove for a Cadillac NASCAR team. However, a good looking European guy like Leclerc, Lewis or El Matador wearing sunglasses in the front seat of Cadillac Greenlander sat on a cliff side road in Monaco or the Amalfi coast? They’d notice that and it’d begin reshaping their perception.
It’s also important to remember that, unlike many smaller or medium sized countries that aren’t used to seeing their compatriots at the top level of international sports or Hollywood, Americans are used to that. They won’t be interested or impressed by a mediocre athlete in let alone in a mediocre team just because it’s a series we rarely have someone reach. They’ll only be interested in a winner or someone super attractive and/or unusually charismatic.
David BR (@david-br)
11th March 2025, 15:22
Boss Hogg, basically :)
sam
10th March 2025, 18:42
Sheesh… Generalize much?
ADUB SMALLBLOCK (@waptraveler)
10th March 2025, 19:01
I agree with Velocityboy. They should have two experienced F1 drivers who are familiar with how F1 cars feel on track, that can provide feedback that is relavent to the suspensions, braking systems, regen system and aero on these cars. Won’t be top tier, but this team will be in a learning stage for a couple seasons in any case.
Velocityboy (@velocityboy)
10th March 2025, 18:44
Given the limited amount of testing, one would think the only decision would be to get two drivers with F1 experience at least for the first few years. In my humble opinion, if they put an American in a seat on day one they’re not really serious about competing and it’s simply a marketing exercise.
anon
10th March 2025, 19:17
@velocityboy of course, if you wanted to be a bit tongue in cheek, then it could be pointed out that Alexander Rossi would be a US citizen that would also meet your requirement of having experience of racing in Formula 1.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th March 2025, 19:26
anon Indeed, but of course, his previous F1 racing experience is only for a few GPs in 2015, so basically next-to-nothing.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th March 2025, 19:33
@velocityboy I agree that going for two drivers with (vast) F1 racing experience would be better for a start rather than a rookie-experience mix especially as they definitely don’t need to have an American driver.
However, their desire to have one immediately is understandable & fully within their rights.
El Pollo Loco
10th March 2025, 19:51
If you look closely at what they’re saying, they’re clearly not saying they require one immediately.
Alianora La Canta (@alianora-la-canta)
11th March 2025, 21:47
@velocityboy On the other hand, the reserve driver is usually someone inexperienced, and F1’s rules more or less oblige teams to have at least one for the 4 FP1 sessions.
Tony Mansell (@tonymansell)
10th March 2025, 18:44
Well if they run as well as Manor did in F1 they could sign Max and still be at the back. I hope they are successful but the history of most brand new f1 teams suggests otherwise. Add to that the split bases in the States with only a satellite operation at Silverstone and you’ve got 3 big fat red flags already
MarkWebber (@markwebber)
10th March 2025, 19:44
Manor was a poor privateer, Cadillac is backed up by a big corporation. It would be fairer to compare it to Toyota or Jaguar F1 experiences, who spent a fortune and got poor results
MichaelN
10th March 2025, 19:09
Well, there’s this thing called the FIA Super License. Currently, in Indycar there are USAmericans (which is what these guys mean when they use the word American) in Alexander Rossi (5 points, not enough but was a holder more than three years ago and could get a license on special approval), Herta (32 points; not enough), Newgarden (41; would qualify), Santino Ferrucci (2 points; not enough). In F2, there’s Jak Crawford (20 points; not enough). In the WEC there’s Dane Cameron (8 points; not enough) and Gustavo Menezes (10 points; not enough).
So, other than Logan Sargeant there’s exactly one USAmerican who would be able to join: Josef Newgarden. And he needs to get a move on because his 30 points from 2022 will lapse by the end of this year.
Jere (@jerejj)
10th March 2025, 19:31
Some interesting notes & of course, Rossi’s previously valid super license expired at the end of 2018 when three full years passed since his last F1 race outing, but since he’s a past holder, all he should necessarily need to do for revalidation is drive a modern F1 car for at least 300 km in racing speeds, but looking at the other drivers, the likelihood that most of them would reach eligibility within this year is relatively low, & to be honest, I mistakenly thought or understood that Crawford would be a holder, although as he competes in F2, his chances of reaching eligibility are comparatively higher than for those competing in IndyCar or even WEC.
El Pollo Loco
10th March 2025, 20:06
You’re taking his statement too literally. This is just a round about way of saying “we’re going to only sign a driver if he merits it.”
“It’s certainly something I think the fans would like to see and I see no reason why that can’t happen.” reads like something a guy making sure not to promise anything and who doesn’t know what he’s talking about would say. It’s seem this guy isn’t super knowledgeable about F1 and that does not surprise me in the last. I have worked w/tons of big companies who launched some big project to connect with a specific audience (be it NASCAR, Harry Potter fans, the NFL, Pokémon tournaments) that knew nothing about the hobby, sport, franchise, etc. and neither did their comms team most of the time. This sounded like a guy who sat through a few meetings and skimmed through a briefing packet prepared by an intern and then began fielding questions from a few select publications.
greasemonkey
10th March 2025, 23:31
What would you call people from the United States? Or are we thinking they don’t even deserve a name.
SteveP
11th March 2025, 8:36
I believe a past President said he was proud to be a merkin – how about that? :)
David BR (@david-br)
10th March 2025, 21:53
So true. How about a Canadian?
Goriot
10th March 2025, 22:14
An F1 driver with lots of experience and living in the USA… Romain Grosjean !!
Dane
11th March 2025, 1:10
F1 has managed to become popular in America with a star home driver. It would
nice to see Herta get a shot though. It boggles my mind that a guy can finish runner up in IndyCar last season but be “unqualified” for F1.
Dane
11th March 2025, 1:25
I meant to say *without* a star driver!
SteveP
11th March 2025, 8:38
I can’t figure out why 3rd in F2 collects 40 points
a (@aaaa)
11th March 2025, 11:56
Danny Rics an American, Isn’t he.
David BR (@david-br)
11th March 2025, 15:20
No he’s Australian and like all famous Australians, starred in Neighbours before his successful career as an actor in the Formula 1 show.
Kerry Maxwell (@kerrymaxwell)
11th March 2025, 13:59
As an American who has been watching F1 since 2000, in those 25 years I could never understand why the press fussed so much about US drivers. I really couldn’t care less where a mid-fielder/ back marker is from. If a driver from the US were to enter and start finishing in the top 10, it would be exciting not because of where they were born/ reside, but because a successful rookie is great for the sport, no matter where they are from. Sure another Phil Hill would be exciting, another Scott Speed, not so much, and in fact the latter would just be really depressing.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
11th March 2025, 15:36
@kerrymaxwell It’s down to the belief a competitive American driver would attract more American fans to the sport – which is pretty much what Lowden said, as you can see.
No doubt there are many fans, like yourself, who enjoy F1 regardless of whether there’s a driver the same nationality as yourself competing. But look at what a driver like Colapinto did for F1’s popularity in Argentina last year.
El Pollo Loco
11th March 2025, 18:57
You can’t compare Argentina, which does not have many athletes representing them on the international stage with the US. The US is a lot like the Japanese are when it comes to drivers. They cheer and pay attention to the best drivers. The Japanese never came out to the track to cheer on the many just decent F1 drivers we’ve had. Just like no one cared about Scott Speed or Sargeant in America.
It’s an irony that the media pushes the narrative that an American driver will bring a lot of hype and fans and then in circular logic, asserts that what F1 teams believe.
El Pollo Loco
11th March 2025, 18:52
This is something I’ve tried to explain, Kerry. American F1 fans watch F1 to see the best drivers and something very different than they get from American motorsports. There’s just this enduring belief among the mostly European F1 press that leads them to believe any American driver will attract US fans. Americans are spoiled for choice when it comes to athletes. Unless this driver is a star and winning, they won’t care an iota.