Cadillac arrives at the Hungaroring for the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix, the 11th round of the 2026 Formula One season and its debut year, aiming to convert recent progress into a more competitive result before the championship’s summer break, which extends through nearly the entire month of August.
The team will introduce a novelty in FP1: Colton Herta will substitute for Valtteri Bottas. It will be the American’s second appearance in an official F1 session this year, following his debut at the Barcelona Grand Prix in June. In addition to his duties with Cadillac, Herta will also continue his program in Formula 2.
“It’s very exciting to have another chance in FP1. It’s a great opportunity for my personal experience, but the ultimate goal is, of course, to help the team in its development. It’s been six weeks since I last sat in the car, and there has been a lot of progress in that period. My job is to help the race drivers deliver the best possible Hungarian Grand Prix—and also to provide the feedback that will assist the team in its long-term development goals and give me a stronger base for future sessions,” Herta said.
Team principal Graeme Lowdon stressed that the Hungaroring could suit Cadillac’s car characteristics a bit better, while reaffirming that reliability remains a priority: “Hungary is likely to be another hot weekend—but on a circuit that perhaps fits a little better with our car’s attributes than last week,” Lowdon said. “I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made through the first half of our inaugural F1 season, but there is still work to do to achieve the reliability we want.”
According to the official, the team will also use the weekend to assess the new brake drums developed after the issues faced in Austria. “We will run stress tests on the MAC-26 with a series of race simulations so that both drivers can extract the maximum performance from the car,” he added.
The Hungarian leg arrives at a period of the calendar that is particularly busy for Formula 1. Sergio Pérez highlighted the challenge of racing back-to-back on tracks with different characteristics, but said the team is ready:
“Back-to-back races are a real challenge for teams, especially those with very different characteristics. It’s tough to switch from one circuit to another, review our last race, prepare for the next one, bring updated parts, and then pull the best out of ourselves as the season progresses at this pace — but we’re well prepared, the team is working cohesively, and we’re eager to head into the summer break with a strong performance in Hungary.”
Bottas also arrives motivated after feeling the midfield pack closer at the previous Grand Prix: “It was good to complete the full race distance last weekend, and it seemed we were a bit closer to the midfield. The Hungaroring should suit our car better, and we’re excited to head into the break with momentum,” said the Finn.
The Hungarian Grand Prix takes place from July 24 to 26, and F1MANIA.NET will follow the event in real time.
