New F1 team 'reject seven drivers' for 2026 season as final line-up 'confirmed'

The new Cadillac F1 team analysed seven different drivers before deciding not to sign any of them for the 2026 season, it has been reported.

The American constructor are set to enter F1 as the sport's 11th team from next season onwards.

Their arrival will represent the first time F1 has had more than 10 teams on the grid since the 2016 season, with Manor Racing subsequently folding in March 2017.

Cadillac have appointed former Manor boss Graeme Lowdon as their team principal, and will also be working with Andretti Autosport - who themselves unsuccessfully attempted to enter Formula 1.

When Cadillac's entry was first announced, it was speculated that they could attempt to bring in a driver from Andretti Autosport's IndyCar stable, with Colton Herta and Kyle Kirkwood potential options if that were to be the case.

A new chapter begins as the Cadillac Formula 1™ Team officially joins the FIA Formula One World Championship for the 2026 season.@F1 | @Cadillac | @GM pic.twitter.com/i2V4Qy4wZA

— Cadillac Formula 1 Team (@Cadillac_F1) March 7, 2025

Reigning series champion Alex Palou and Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward were also linked.

Mexican O'Ward has had brief experience of F1 as McLaren's occasional free practice driver and is extremely popular in his home country, but he refuted suggestions that he had held talks over the seat earlier this year.

Instead, Cadillac have focused on drivers with previous F1 race experience, with Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez expected to be announced as their drivers for 2026.

Bottas and Perez are both out of F1 race seats this season after being dropped by Sauber and Red Bull respectively, but offer a wealth of know-how having both driven Constructors' Championship-winning cars.

Which other drivers did Cadillac target?

According to RACER, Cadillac had identified at least seven other drivers to race for them next season - with all seven of them either currently or formerly involved with F1 teams.

They are said to include Jack Doohan and Franco Colapinto, who have both driven for Alpine this season, as well as Bottas' former Sauber team-mate Zhou Guanyu.

Mick Schumacher, Aston Martin reserve driver Felipe Drugovich and Mercedes' Frederik Vesti - who shares reserve duties for the team with Bottas - are the other names cited in the report.

And the final contender is said to have been Jak Crawford, who is in second place in the F2 championship and - perhaps significantly - is the American driver who currently has the best chance of getting into F1 in the near future.

He races for the DAMS team, who previously employed current F1 drivers Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon in junior categories.

In addition, Crawford is a reserve driver for Aston Martin and has been aiding the team's development of their 2026 F1 car - ahead of major power unit regulation changes - in the simulator.

"I've been working on the 2026 car in the sim and there's been a lot of evolution, with both the power unit and the chassis," he told the team's official website in July.

"I've never helped develop a power unit before and I've never gone through this level of rule change in Formula One as a driver, so to see things others aren't getting to see and play my part in the project is really exciting. It's a privilege."