Valtteri Bottas has revealed the severity of Cadillac’s recurring Formula 1 brake problems after excessive heat caused components inside the car to begin burning during the Hungarian Grand Prix. The American team’s revised brake ducts failed to resolve the reliability weakness, and Valtteri Bottas does not expect a major solution to be ready before the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
During Cadillac’s debut Formula 1 season, the team has repeatedly encountered braking-system failures that have left its cars stationary beside the track and surrounded by smoke. Outright speed has not necessarily been the team’s greatest limitation during its first campaign. Instead, reliability has emerged as the principal concern, with brake cooling becoming a recurring problem at several rounds of the championship.
Cadillac brake problems return after Austrian GP failures
The problem has affected both Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez. Both drivers were forced to retire during the early stages of the Austrian Grand Prix, where the high temperatures recorded throughout the weekend made an already critical situation even more difficult to manage.
Cadillac hoped that introducing revised brake ducts for the Hungarian Grand Prix would provide a solution. However, the overheating returned at the Hungaroring and forced Valtteri Bottas to stop in the pit lane.
The left-front brake caught fire on lap 15 of the race. Valtteri Bottas had to use the pit wall to slow the car before bringing it to a halt, after which he personally extinguished the flames because no marshals were immediately available to assist him.
Cadillac suffers second double retirement of 2026
Sergio Perez was also unable to reach the chequered flag in Hungary, although his retirement was caused by a front suspension problem rather than another brake failure. It was Cadillac’s second double retirement of the season, bringing another difficult weekend to a premature conclusion for the American operation.
The team left the Hungaroring without a finish despite attempting to address one of the car’s most persistent weaknesses. The complete 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix results and classification confirmed that neither Cadillac driver completed the race.
Afterwards, Valtteri Bottas attributed the latest failure partly to the hot conditions and the particular demands of the Hungaroring. The circuit’s sequence of corners gives the brakes few opportunities to cool and places substantial pressure on the entire system.
“That new front ducting system was intended to solve this problem and prevent it from happening, but we clearly still need more airflow through the brakes,” Valtteri Bottas said.
Valtteri Bottas explains why everything inside begins to burn
Explaining the origins and consequences of the problem, Valtteri Bottas confirmed that the extreme temperatures had caused serious damage to other parts of the Cadillac. The overheating was not restricted to the brake itself, with the heat eventually affecting the surrounding components and leaving him without any braking power.
“The brakes overheat too much, to the point that everything inside starts to burn,” Valtteri Bottas explained. “That obviously destroys everything. In fact, during the in-lap, I completely lost the brakes because I think the brake lines had burned. That is why I had to stop the car against the wall.”
The incident illustrated why the problem has become such a major reliability concern for Cadillac. Once temperatures move beyond the operating window, the damage can spread rapidly and leave the driver with no safe way to continue.
Cadillac unlikely to have a complete brake fix for Zandvoort
Cadillac’s next challenge will come at the Dutch Grand Prix, but the mandatory summer shutdown will limit the team’s opportunities to develop and manufacture a solution before Formula 1 returns to action. The race at Zandvoort is scheduled for 23 August, with the complete 2026 Dutch Grand Prix schedule and session times covering the full 21–23 August weekend.
Although Zandvoort presents a different challenge from the Hungaroring, Valtteri Bottas does not expect Cadillac to arrive with a comprehensive update. Any work completed before the next round is likely to focus on preventing another brake failure rather than increasing the car’s performance.
“I don’t think we will have anything ready for the next event,” Valtteri Bottas admitted.
“Hopefully, there will be something for the brakes, but nothing related to performance.”
With Cadillac already having suffered two double retirements during its first Formula 1 campaign, finding a reliable brake-cooling solution will remain a priority when development resumes. The issue could otherwise continue to compromise the team’s ability to finish races and gather the mileage needed to develop its first car across the remaining events on the 2026 Formula 1 calendar.
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