Ford CEO aims dig at ‘competitor down the street’ Cadillac during Red Bull’s season launch

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Ford’s collaboration with Red Bull and General Motors’ Cadillac entry have seen two American automotive powerhouses join the F1 grid, and they’re both battling for bragging rights in the US.

While both of their introductions to F1 are in different ways, the rivalry between Ford and General Motors is well and truly on.

Ford are officially back in F1 following Red Bull’s launch of their 2026 challenger at the heart of the American giant’s operations in Detroit, Michigan.

Their technical partnership will see them collaborate with Red Bull Powertrains to develop the Austrian constructor’s power units for the foreseeable future.

Cadillac, on the other hand, are a brand new team on the grid. Their entry to the sport marks the first time since 2016 that the F1 paddock housed 11 teams, and the jabs between the two automotive powerhouses have already begun.

• READ MORE: Cadillac’s future Formula 1 plans will ensure they won’t fall into the same midfield trap as Haas

Ford CEO Jim Farley aims dig at Cadillac during Red Bull’s 2026 launch event

During an interview with the Fast and the Curious podcast, Ford CEO Jim Farley was asked why the American giants decided to take on the mammoth task of joining the F1 grid as an engine supplier.

Farley explained his reasoning while also taunting Ford’s US rivals, General Motors, for opting to use Ferrari engines until their power unit division is up and running for 2029.

The American executive said, “We did it because in a company like Ford, if you want to be a great company and compete against the Chinese, we have to take on projects that almost seem impossible.

“This is almost an impossible kind of project. Our engineers have been there in Milton Keynes for four years. We have done everything we can, but it’s not just getting to peak power.

We have to have drivability, we have to have reliability as well with that PU, and this is one of the hardest projects I’ve seen in my career. I think we need to stay very realistic.

“I’m very proud that the team isn’t, like our competitor down the street, having a Ferrari engine. I like the fact that we’re doing it ourselves. We’re taking on this. But that doesn’t mean that we’re going to be successful.”

• READ MORE: Formula 1 teams must avoid humiliating repeat of ‘PR disaster’ at first 2026 shakedown

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Ford and General Motors are now locked in a fierce rivalry to become the superior American manufacturer in F1

Ford’s jab at Cadillac’s debut season in F1 comes after a war of words that has ensued between the two companies over the last few months.

It began after Cadillac F1 team CEO Dan Towriss shunned any comparisons between the two, stating via The Athletic, “One is a marketing deal with very minimal impact, while GM is an equity owner.

“They’re deeply embedded from an engineering standpoint, and they were involved from day one. Those two deals couldn’t be more different.”

Ford chairman Bill Ford was ‘stunned’ upon reading the comments from their competitor, and called the verdict from Towriss ‘absurd’.

The great-grandson of founder Henry Ford told the US publication, “I would say, actually, the reverse is true.

“They’re running a Ferrari engine. They’re not running a Cadillac engine. I don’t know if they have any GM employees on the race team.”

The only way things will be settled is on the track. With Ford joining an already established and highly successful Red Bull Racing outfit, they are expected to have the upper hand over Cadillac at the very beginning of this fierce rivalry.