Zhou Guanyu has delivered an early verdict on Cadillac’s preparations for its maiden Formula 1 season in 2026, with just weeks to go before its car debuts on track.
Dropped by Sauber at the end of 2024, Guanyu found a new role as Ferrari Reserve driver for 2025, absent from the grid for the first time since his debut in 2022.
Leaving the Scuderia at the start of 2026, Zhou has joined the fledgling Cadillac team for its maiden campaign in a similar role to Sauber.
Facing a second season on the sidelines, the Chinese driver is aware of the scale facing General Motors’ first foray into F1.
Delivering his verdict on his first impressions of Cadillac, Zhou outlined the ethos at the team.
“Firstly, I’m really excited for this new project”, he said to formula1.com.
“The main thing is that with this new team, I know for example Graeme [Lowdon], Valtteri and also a lot of engineers that work in the team and, over the course of this year, I’ve seen how the team was setting up and I really felt the future is bright.
“They’re not setting up a team just to be on the grid – they’re setting up a team trying to compete.
“They have a mission target, to try to achieve over the years, and to bring Cadillac to a top midfield team and so on onwards, so that’s what really attracted me.
“On the other side, I think the team [saw] what I was able to do over the course of last year and what my role was, and I think it can really benefit both sides.
“So to be the team’s only reserve driver, I feel like this is the best opportunity for me in order to be back behind the wheel, and at the same time I think what I am capable of bringing [in terms of] information and, together with two very experienced drivers, it just brings the team forward.
“This year is a massive rule change, so all this knowledge, experience we’ve had over the years, this can be a help if you’re comparing to a less experienced driver.”
Zhou Guangu outlines early Cadillac goals
F1, aptly labelled the piranha club, has not been kind to new teams in modern times.
With the exception of Haas in 2016, previous new ventures into F1 since 2010 all folded, including Team Principal Graeme Lowdon’s previous team Manor in 2016.
Zhou revealed the ethos at Cadillac, as it aims to establish itself in the cutthroat world of F1.
“I think when you have a new team, you can’t say that when you get to F1 for the first race, you’re going to be on top or you’re going to be fighting for a top 10 easily,” he said.
“It’s about building on that. Many midfield teams started from scratch and they had to build on it, and it’s all about getting the right people and putting the team in the right place, not rushing everything.
“I think on that side Graeme is doing a fantastic job.
“Who knows [what will happen] – it’s a question mark at the end of the day, because everything is so different with the regulations for this season, so you have no expectation for any teams.
“But what I can say is that how this team is looking over the course of the last few weeks and months, it’s definitely in the right direction in order to make the team a lot stronger and better.”
READ MORE: Cadillac announces Zhou Guanyu as reserve driver for F1 2026
Discussion about this post