Mario Andretti says Cadillac has made encouraging early progress in F1, with the team already improving after a difficult debut weekend in Australia

Mario Andretti

Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images

Mario Andretti has reflected on the start of the season for the new Cadillac Formula 1 team, sharing encouraging news ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix.

The American outfit, which joined the grid as the 11th team in 2026 after a long approval process, has been realistic with its approach to the start of the season.

“There had been a lot of anxiety, no question,” Andretti told the Drive to Wynn podcast when asked what the feeling was like when the team arrived in Melbourne.

“But at the same time, there we were, and everyone just looking forward from that point, believe it or not, and feeling fortunate to have arrived.

“There was so much support. The top management from Cadillac was there, which is always welcome.

“But at the same time, from my standpoint, being around, you know, this is our rodeo, obviously, and I just wanted to see how we looked vis-à-vis the other teams. And you know something, Cadillac looked like they belonged in every way, the presentation and the execution, everything.

“It’s a new team, but there’s a lot of experience there, thanks to Graeme Lowdon [team principal] and Pat Symonds [consultant] and individuals like that, that have been there, done that, insiders. And they were able to lure some really good, solid talents from other teams as well.

“I was proud, quite honestly, and very pleased to see them execute. Glitches here and there, but you have to deal with it.”

While it had aimed to simply finish the race at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Valtteri Bottas was one of six drivers who failed to complete the race.

But after the second round in China, the team had already seen improvements. Bottas finished 13th in the Chinese Grand Prix with his team-mate Sergio Perez in 15th, keeping in mind that there were another seven drivers who either retired or did not start the race at the Shanghai International Circuit.

“So we got through the first race and the second race was definitely a little bit better in China, both cars finishing, and even now, in the qualifying, respectively, instead of being four seconds off the pace, they were two seconds off the pace, which is a lot, but it’s an improvement,” Andretti continued.

“So we’ll be looking to achieve that in every race as we progress through the season.”