Daniel Ricciardo’s stance on F1 return with Cadillac as Valtteri Bottas leads Sergio Perez for 2026 seat

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Cadillac are still to sign a driver for the General Motors team’s debut in 2026, despite likely being Daniel Ricciardo and Valtteri Bottas’ best route for a return to the F1 grid.

Formula 1 officially gave General Motors the green light to add its Cadillac brand to the grid this March as the series’ new 11th team. The 2026 F1 season will be the first campaign with 22 cars in the field since 2016 and a number of names have emerged as options for Cadillac.

Bottas has confirmed he has spoken with Cadillac over a seat for next season, as well, as the 35-year-old is interested in the project underway across their Silverstone factory and engine division in Charlotte. General Motors is working on Cadillac having a factory engine by 2029.

Their Silverstone facility under the watch of team principal Graeme Lowdon and engineering consultant Pat Symonds is responsible for building Cadillac’s first F1 car ready for 2026 pre-season testing starting in January in Barcelona. Cadillac aim to be fully set in the US in 2028.

Valtteri Bottas’ path to Cadillac is clearing as Daniel Ricciardo has ‘withdrawn’ from the mix

Cadillac are working on finalising their 2026 F1 driver line-up now, too, having spoken with a flurry of names including Bottas and Sergio Perez. But Cadillac’s quest to convince Ricciardo to return to F1 has suffered a serious blow, as the Australian has ‘withdrawn’ from the race.

READ MORE: Daniel Ricciardo’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

That is according to Blick, which reports that Ricciardo is not interested in signing up to drive for Cadillac during the 2026 F1 season. Instead, a path is clearing for Bottas to join Cadillac after publicly sharing his desire to help lead the General Motors brand’s debut in Formula 1.

With Ricciardo not keen on joining Cadillac, Bottas is ‘unlikely’ to face much competition for a seat. Perez is still considering an offer to join the GM brand, who Aston Martin reserve driver Felipe Drugovich is also ‘ready’ to join if Cadillac ultimately decide to sign a younger name.

Cadillac were considering offering Ricciardo a return to F1, having fallen off the grid back in September after Red Bull kicked the 35-year-old out of their junior team Racing Bulls to put Liam Lawson in the car. But Bottas now leads Perez to become Cadillac’s experienced driver.

Daniel Ricciardo considers his Formula 1 career to be over

Cadillac always faced an uphill struggle to convince Ricciardo to return to F1 in 2026 and be a figurehead of their project with his vast experience in Formula 1, as well as his marketing appeal in America. The Perth native won eight of his 257 Grand Prix starts from 2011-2024.

Ricciardo considers his Formula 1 career to be over, as the three-time F1 polesitter feels he has now retired after being booted off the grid with nine rounds of the 2024 season left to play. In contrast, Bottas is very much trying to return to F1 and wants to do it with Cadillac.

READ MORE: Valtteri Bottas’ life outside F1 from girlfriend to wine and gin

Bottas also fell off the grid at the end of the 2024 season after Audi elected against offering the 35-year-old a new contract to drive for Sauber in 2025. So, the Finn re-joined Mercedes as a reserve driver this season, and Bottas has been a key mentor for Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Cadillac can even utilise Bottas’ experience of the Ferrari power unit from his time at Sauber from 2022-24, with the American team buying the Scuderia’s engines until GM has a factory unit ready. Bottas is also a 10-time Grand Prix winner and 20-time polesitter from 246 starts.