Cadillac had conversations with Red Bull employees before signing Sergio Perez, and what they said convinced them to sign the Mexican.
Sergio Perez will join forces with Valtteri Bottas at Cadillac for the team’s first season as Formula One’s 11th team. The new teammates represent the most experienced driver pairing on the grid with 16 wins between them.
There has been doubt expressed surrounding Perez’s return to F1 after the disastrous end to his Red Bull tenure. His winless 2024 season in the Drivers’ championship-winning Red Bull cost the team the Constructors’ title.
Cadillac had concerns about Perez’s collapse at Red Bull, but his former team had his back.
Red Bull’s conversations with Cadillac convinced them to sign Sergio Perez
Perez’s 2024 performances left Red Bull no choice but to replace him. He finished 8th in the Drivers’ Championship, had no wins or pole positions, and had only four podiums. The Mexican went 14 races without a podium during that period.
Red Bull’s second seat problems started long before Perez, however. Following the departure of Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly and Alexander Albon struggled as Max Verstappen’s teammates and went on to have successful careers away from the team.
Perez’s replacement, Liam Lawson, lasted two races with Red Bull, and Yuki Tsunoda is yet to score a point since being swapped for the New Zealander.
Luke Smith of The Athletic was told by Dan Towriss, the CEO of Cadillac team owner TWG Motorsports, that Red Bull’s second seat troubles were a major factor towards the team signing Perez. The team even spoke to Red Bull employees to better understand his struggles.
Smith wrote, “The subsequent difficulties faced by Pérez’s Red Bull replacement, Liam Lawson, and his own replacement after just two races, Yuki Tsunoda, helped paint the picture.
“But Towriss said Cadillac spoke to people at Red Bull to understand Pérez’s final year from the inside, giving the team confidence he could get back to his best.”
That will give Cadillac and fans of Perez hope that “Checo” is about to turn back into his brilliant best. The Perez who went from last to first for his maiden win, and fending off Lewis Hamilton to help Verstappen to the title, could be back in F1.
Cadillac had concerns about Valtteri Bottas’ Sauber form
Beyond Cadillac’s concerns about Perez’s Red Bull form, Bottas’ problems in his last F1 stint raised eyebrows with his new team.
The Finn qualified well, as he has throughout his entire F1 career. He reached Q3 in every qualifying session at Mercedes. But as was the case when driving for the Silver Arrows, Bottas’ race pace left much to be desired.
Smith explained, “Cadillac’s leadership dug into the background to try to understand why they had respectively struggled so much through 2024. Towriss highlighted that Bottas’s qualifying form was strong that year, with the Finn outqualifying Zhou 21-3, only to then slump in the races.”
In the end, Cadillac decided Bottas’ experience and steady hand behind the wheel outweighed any lack in performance during races. As a brand new team, they need drivers in the car who know exactly how to operate during a race weekend.
Bottas also brings to the table something that Perez can’t: 2025 F1 experience. Perez stepped away from the sport this season, but Bottas has served his former team as their reserve driver behind George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
He’s at the cutting edge of how elite teams conduct themselves, and is ready to pass on that knowledge to his new team next season.