‘Super impressive’ driver told he would be Cadillac’s best option if they signed a current F1 rookie

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Cadillac are yet to confirm which two drivers will form their line-up ahead of the 2026 Formula 1 season.

A number of drivers have been closely linked with the position, with Valtteri Bottas seemingly closest to becoming Cadillac’s first F1 driver.

Another driver closely linked with Cadillac is Mexican star Sergio Perez, although there is an argument that team principal Graeme Lowdon might not opt for two experienced racers.

There are plenty of younger drivers, ranging from Mick Schumacher and Zhou Guanyu, who have previous F1 experience, to the likes of Felipe Drugovich and Jak Crawford with zero F1 race starts to their name, who are also keen on the role.

Fernando Alonso has backed Drugovich as a top option for Cadillac, and there might be a reason why the American team opt for youth over experience.

There are plenty of rookies on the grid this season, and several have immediately proven why they were promoted from Formula 2 last year.

Pundit James Hinchcliffe was asked about Formula 1’s youngest drivers and which one he would love to sign if he were in charge of Cadillac’s driver line-up for 2026.

READ MORE: Who is 2025 Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto? Everything you need to know

James Hinchcliffe would sign Gabriel Bortoleto if he were in charge of Cadillac’s F1 team

Hinchcliffe was speaking on The Red Flags Podcast and asked about each of the rookies on the grid this season.

Speaking about Sauber junior Gabriel Bortoleto, he explained: “Bortoleto has been super impressive because that car is not great. And even when it’s good for a Sauber, it’s still not great.

“And Nico is known as one of the best Saturday guys. Like that was kind of one of his things. And I think, I think Gabriel, I think he’s beating him right now, eight to six.

“So that’s really impressive. And he does that on Saturday, but then he backs it up on Sunday.

“Like he qualified up there in Austria, stayed there, had a great race in Hungary. So he’s been super impressive as well.

“And what I like about him is he’s just a kid who came from nothing, and he really just had to work hard and like really, really put in the effort to get there. He had to win to keep going, and he did.

“I would say the most impressive [rookie] at this point, as of Hungary, I would say it’s probably Bortoleto.

Hinchcliffe was then asked if he was in charge of Cadillac and had to sign one current rookie for next season, who would he choose, and he explained: “Of the four that are out there now? Yeah, probably [Bortoleto].”

READ MORE: All to know about General Motors’ Cadillac F1 team from engine to drivers

Cadillac could have their very own Gabriel Bortoleto for 2026 in Alex Dunne

Bortoleto’s rise to Formula 1 was extremely impressive, winning back-to-back Formula 3 and Formula 2 titles.

While Cadillac don’t have a driver academy of their own, neither do Sauber, and they had to sign the Brazilian from McLaren’s junior program.

Alex Dunne is the latest driver emerging from their crop, and like Bortoleto, his path in the team is blocked by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

However, David Coulthard has backed Dunne for an F1 seat after a very impressive F2 campaign.

He was within a few tenths of Piastri during his FP1 run in Austria, and while a title charge is unlikely, Dunne appears to have all the attributes required to follow in Bortoleto’s footsteps and become a Formula 1 driver very soon.