After a very public failed attempt by Michael Andretti to bring another American team to Formula 1, General Motors has fought through the bureaucracy and politics to join the grid as a works team in 2026. The announcement came this morning after the series just wrapped up the Las Vegas Grand Prix over the weekend.
Formula 1 is touted as the pinnacle of motorsports, but it’s also the most exclusive. Currently there are only 10 teams, and each team can only field two cars. Formula 1 share’s its profits with the teams so whenever a new challenger wants to join the fray, they’re often met with push back from the other teams that don’t want a smaller slice of the pie.
In 2023 Michael Andretti made his intentions known that he would make an attempt bringing a team to the Formula 1 grid by 2025 or 2026 with GM as an engine partner under the Cadillac brand. While F1’s sanctioning body the FIA approved the bid on its technical merit, Formula One Management (FOM) has the final say and it rejected Andretti. Ultimately concluding that it didn’t believe Andretti could put together a competitive team in the window of time specified. The rejection caused such an uproar that a House Judiciary Committee launched an investigation into F1.
With GM making a successful bid to join as a manufacturer team with its Cadillac brand, it would seem that the FOM has more faith than it did when Michael Andretti would be running the show. American racing legend Mario Andretti will serve as a director on the team’s board, but there has been no mention if Michael Andretti will be involved.
As the plan stands, GM will join the Formula 1 grid in 2026 and come on as an engine supplier at a later date. This means for at least the first season or two, the Cadillac F1 car will be powered by another engine manufacturer, likely Renault or possibly Ferrari. This is not unheard of in the sport. For example, currently both McLaren and Aston Martin’s F1 cars are running Mercedes-Benz engines.
The GM/Cadillac effort will join Haas F1 as the second American-owned F1 team on the grid and once GM gets its engine program underway it will make GM the first American “works” team in Formula 1 history. A works team is one that builds its own car and engines, usually backed by a major auto manufacturer such as Scuderia Ferrari for example.
We would be lying if we said we’re not curious as to what impact this could have on Cadillac’s road cars. In 2026 F1 is moving toward hybrid powertrains with 50/50 split of power between the combustion engine and electric motor. Could that mean that once GM gets its engine program up and running we’ll see its high-performance hybrid tech trickle down into its road cars? That would be something wouldn’t it?
