Sergio Perez ‘enjoying the challenge’ at Cadillac despite ‘a lot of issues’ at Barcelona shakedown
- Henry Eccles
- Jan 26
- 3 min read
Sergio Perez says he is “enjoying the challenge” of Formula 1’s 2026 regulations despite his new team Cadillac encountering “a lot of issues” during the Barcelona shakedown.
After a year out, Perez returns to F1 alongside fellow veteran Valtteri Bottas as Cadillac prepare for their first-ever season in the sport, with the pair sharing duties during a private shakedown at the Circuit de Catalunya.
Despite support from parent company General Motors and a strong motorsport pedigree, Cadillac enter F1 as underdogs, with sweeping regulations set to test even the most experienced of teams and drivers.
2026’s regulations will see a raft of aerodynamic and power unit challenges to overcome, including the introduction of active aero, sustainable fuels, and most notably, a 50/50 split between electrical power and internal combustion.
“It will be a challenge to adapt,” says Perez
Sergio Perez at his Cadillac arrival announcement in Mexico City in August 2025 - Getty Images
On his 36th birthday, Perez, who spent 14 years in F1 with the likes of Red Bull, Racing Point and McLaren, reflected on both Cadillac’s new car and the new regulations during the Barcelona shakedown on Monday.
“It's always challenging when there is a massive rule changing,” Perez told F1 TV.
“To get laps in is the main objective. We're just getting some laps on the board, which was promising. We had a lot of issues today, which is good. It's our first day, so it's been positive in that regard. You want all the problems to come now, and hopefully the next couple of days can be a lot smoother for us.
“I think these cars are massively different to what we've been used to. It's still very early days. In my opinion, this has been the biggest regulation change I've had in my career. It will be a challenge to adapt, all the drivers will face those challenges.”
Despite the huge challenge in front of the debuting Cadillac, Perez expressed his optimism and excitement to be back in F1 and spearheading a “massive project.”
“It's really nice to be back, starting a new season, and also with a new team,” the six-time race winner said.
“It's a massive project. People sometimes forget how big the organisations of a Formula One team are. Just seeing each other, getting in their positions, learning how to deal with each other, it's great.
“I'm enjoying the challenge and I'm really looking forward to growing together with the team.”
Bottas: “It seems every team had issues”
Cadillac Team Principal Graeme Lowdon and Valtteri Bottas at the 2025 Australian GP - Getty Images
As for what actually happened during the ‘unofficial’ testing in Barcelona, very few details have been revealed.
The opening day of a five-day shakedown from January 26 to 30 was strictly held behind closed doors, with no official lap times released and local security even turning away those with their eyes on the circuit from the outside.
Thankfully, Perez’s teammate Bottas was on hand to sum up the first day of testing, and offered an insight into what the teams will be up to during the week.
“It was cold. Early morning, it's quite hard to get the tyres to work here, as we know, but as the temperature picked up, things got a bit better, but we had some issues throughout the day,” Bottas said to F1 TV.
“It's debugging, that's why we're here and it seems like every team had some issues. It's just now really figuring out those and then getting more and more running each day, but it's just great to be here and in the car.”
The 36-year-old Finn, formerly of Williams, Mercedes and Sauber, was not too concerned with Cadillac’s early issues, explaining that the focus instead is to focus on coming to grips with the huge overhaul of regulations.
“It's definitely a big difference to before. The cars, they handle different, you have a bit less load, especially in the high-speed corners.
“The PU, you have so much more torque out of the corners, but then you have the battery to manage and again, for Ferrari (Cadillac’s engine supplier), this is the first proper day of running with their power units, so naturally there is a learning curve.
“So, still lots to learn, lots to improve, but it's quite a challenge for every team and priority list now is get more laps each day.
“I think I got a bit more than 30 laps today, some of them just kind of installs and stuff, but we need to get some proper running in, get the mileage in, and make sure we get a reliable package for race one.”
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