Former Formula 1 technical chief Pat Symonds has just started his new work at the brand-new Cadillac F1 Team, and he offered an update about the opening phase of the build-up of the new F1 outfit.
Last May saw Andretti Global confirm the arrival of former Formula 1 technical chief Pat Symonds as they continued their attempt to join the grid in the future.
The British technical expert most recently served as Chief Technical Officer for Formula One, and he joined the American team at its new Silverstone base of operations after completing h gardening leave at Formula One Management.
Although Formula One first rejected Andretti’s bid to join the sport, a new team was granted an entry last December. Michael Andretti, who was the key figure behind the project stepped back, and the new team is owned by General Motors and TWG Global.
The new outfit is yet to be confirmed by the FIA, but the owners reached an agreement in principle with the Formula 1’s Commercial Rights’ Holder, the FOM to bring a Cadillac team to the series in 2026.
Although the US car giant will build its own F1 power unit that will put the Cadillac Formula 1 Team on the path to being a “full works” team , it will be powered by Ferrari’s engines for at least in the first two years.
General Motors also confirmed that Graeme Lowdon would join the fray as team principal for the new Cadillac F1 team.
Speaking of the challenges of setting up the Cadillac F1 outfit, Formula 1’s former technical chief Pat Symonds has offered an update about the opening phase of the build-up of the new F1 outfit.
“I am delighted to announce that today, January 1st, I officially take up my new role at Cadillac as we build our team to contest the 2026 Formula 1 World Championship. It is an exciting challenge as, if the 2026 pre-season testing follows the pattern of 2014 (when we last had a new power unit), we have less than 400 days until the car runs.”
“General Motors (GM) have a long motorsport tradition, and I remember as a young boy seeing the Chaparral 2F win the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch. Jim Hall, the man behind Chaparral always acknowledged the contribution GM made to that programme.”
Speaking of the starting phase of the new team, Symonds added: “Our first Formula 1 car will use a Ferrari power unit and transmission pending the development of the all-new Cadillac power unit.”
“Starting with the proverbial ‘clean sheet of paper’ presents far more opportunities than it does challenges. The team will be built around not just the highest engineering standards but also the highest ESG standards as we work toward making it the best team to work for in Formula 1.”
