Lowdon buoyed by Perez's return to F1 machinery in Cadillac TPC run

Cadillac's Graeme Lowdon was encouraged by Sergio Perez's first test with Formula 1's new team for 2026, saying the Mexican veteran is "re-entering Formula 1 with exactly the right attitude".

Two weeks ago at Imola, Perez took the wheel of a 2023 Ferrari car, which the Scuderia loaned to its 2026 power unit customer as Cadillac aimed to get its trackside crew race-ready for its debut season.

Perez completed 183 laps across two days in an unpainted SF-23, and while the test with another team's obsolete car wasn't relevant in and of itself, it was the first time the 35-year-old veteran returned to the cockpit of an F1 car since his final race for Red Bull at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, nearly one year ago.

So while the Imola test was a great opportunity for Cadillac's mechanics and trackside engineers to prepare for 2026, it was also a chance for Perez to dust off any cobwebs.

"I could see a real enthusiasm with Checo," team boss Lowdon said when asked by Autosport about his impression of his new driver. "I think he's re-entering Formula 1 with exactly the right attitude. And it's a positive attitude of a racer.

"He's a proper racing driver, but he's been out of the car for a little while, so it was really good to see him in the car.

Sergio Perez, Cadillac Racing

Photo by: Jacopo Rava

"I was intrigued to see how he would be physically because when you drive these cars, in particular on the neck, it's a really difficult area of the body to prepare for what actually happens in a car. And he coped incredibly well with that as well. So that was really encouraging. It's just good to see him go around."

Explaining what Cadillac got out of the two-day outing, Lowdon said: "We're very grateful to Ferrari for lending us an F1 car, because we want to make everything as realistic as possible. And for the mechanics, going through things like blanket procedures, start procedures, the rapid turnaround for Q1 to Q2. There's only one way to do it and that's to do it with a Formula 1 car.

"And it was useful as well for Checo to get used to working with the guys who are going to be on his car crew. He did 90 [laps] on one day and 93 on the other day, so it was good mileage. But an awful lot of it was to go out, come back in, simulate a car coming in, simulate what happens if there's an alarm on the ERS system...

"The mechanics come from different teams, so they have different experiences with different power units, different procedures for ERS emergency and that kind of thing. So, it was super, super useful. I'm really pleased that we did it."

Sergio Perez, Cadillac Racing

Photo by: Jacopo Rava

Lowdon confirmed that the team's second regular driver Valtteri Bottas will join the GM brand's ranks following the conclusion of the 2025 season in Abu Dhabi, until which he remains with Mercedes as its reserve driver.

"We get him after Abu Dhabi," Lowdon added. "I can't wait. He's a good guy to work with. Again, he's super enthusiastic. Mercedes has been really cooperative and helpful.

"I think both Checo and Valtteri still have a lot to offer to F1. If they had walked away from the sport completely, it would have been a loss for F1, so it's great to have them in the team.

"They're both super quick guys, 16 grand prix wins between them, 106 podiums. Just bringing all that experience, that's exactly what we need for the task that we have ahead of us."