Graeme Lowdon Highlights Bahrain Test Pressure 2026

Formula 1, Sportrik Media - Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez completed Cadillac’s Bahrain 2026 pre-season programme in Sakhir with a focus on technical validation of the Ferrari-powered package ahead of the team’s competitive debut.

Across three official testing days overseen by the FIA, the pairing logged a combined 315 laps without significant reliability concerns. The Cadillac F1 Team structured its run plan around aerodynamic correlation, power unit mapping, and evaluation of cooling and energy management systems. No full performance simulations were conducted, reflecting a measured approach aimed at ensuring baseline stability before pursuing outright pace.

Collectively, Bottas and Perez bring 527 grand prix starts and 16 victories, contributing to seven constructors’ championships with Mercedes and Red Bull Racing between 2017 and 2023. That cross-team and multi-regulation experience forms a central pillar of Cadillac’s early development strategy, particularly in identifying chassis balance characteristics and aerodynamic response under the 2026 framework.

“We’re getting accurate feedback straight away,” said Graeme Lowdon.

“These drivers have worked with multiple teams, engineers, cars, power units and chassis. When they provide handling feedback, we are not wasting any time. It is precise, structured and extremely valuable.”

Lowdon also acknowledged that limited FIA testing allocation required certain run plans to be compressed. Nevertheless, operational consistency across the three days is viewed as a positive indicator ahead of the 2026 season opener, with data gathered in Bahrain set to define Cadillac’s short-term development direction before entering full race conditions.