The battle among top Formula 1 teams has intensified over the last two rounds of the championship, in Miami and Canada. However, there is another storyline developing in parallel that is equally compelling: the progress of Cadillac.
The American manufacturer entered Formula 1 this season as the 11th team on the grid and, as expected, is still chasing the established front and midfield runners. At the same time, it is engaged in an unexpected fight with Aston Martin to avoid finishing at the very back of the standings.
Since the Miami Grand Prix, the team led by Graeme Lowdon has begun an intensive development programme on its MAC-26 car, driven this year by Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.
Formula 1 is now preparing for the sixth round of the 2026 World Championship, the first on European soil: the Monaco Grand Prix. As everyone knows, it is one of the most iconic events of the season, defined by extremely low average speeds and a near-total absence of high-speed corners.
It is precisely for this reason that Cadillac has decided to bring further updates this weekend. This will be the third consecutive race weekend in which the team introduces significant upgrades.
The team plans to bring a new rear wing to the Principality, likely with increased downforce, considering that the MAC-26 has shown a lack of aerodynamic load as one of its main weaknesses.
But that is not all, as Cadillac has also confirmed changes to its exhaust layout in order to extract additional downforce and improve performance in low-speed sections. The details have not been fully clarified by the team, but it appears the exhaust system could be modified to accommodate an aerodynamic appendage positioned directly in front of the tailpipes.
This would represent another interpretation of the concept first introduced by Ferrari — the FTM (Flick Tail Mode) — based on the idea used on the SF-26. A similar solution was recently adopted by Williams, which modified its exhaust layout to house an aerodynamic element aimed at increasing rear downforce.
Cadillac is expected to follow the same path, revising its exhaust area to introduce the FTM concept on the MAC-26 cars of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas. So far, Cadillac had only added a small vertical deflector at the lower section of the exhaust outlet. That solution is now set to be replaced by a more complex design with a significantly greater aerodynamic impact.
“For all teams, but especially for a new one, Monaco is a huge challenge,” said Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon. “We made some significant steps forward in Miami and Montreal, but Monaco will present opportunities due to its unpredictability.”
“Our goal will be to introduce further upgrades and deliver a clean weekend without issues. The fact that Cadillac is starting to be considered like the other teams reflects that expectations on us are higher than before, but we are only at our sixth race since our debut. Our goal remains to improve.”
Leave a Reply