Sergio Pérez signs new Cadillac deal until 2029, days before his 300th Grand Prix
Sergio Pérez has extended his Cadillac contract to the end of 2029, two years longer than his old deal, ahead of his home race in Mexico City. Valtteri Bottas's seat is still open.
Sergio Pérez is staying at Cadillac. The team announced on Wednesday that he has signed an extension that keeps him there until the end of 2029. His old deal ran until the end of 2027.
The timing is no accident. This weekend Pérez races at home in Mexico City, where he’ll make his 300th Formula 1 start.
“Fully committed”
Pérez joined Cadillac for its first season, after a year out of F1, and says he’s in it for the long run.
“Joining Cadillac Formula 1 Team from day one was a project I truly believed in,” he said. “Building a Formula 1 team from the ground up takes time, relentless work and patience.”
He added that he is “fully committed for the next three years.”
Cadillac CEO Dan Towriss said Pérez “will remain an integral part of Cadillac Formula 1 Team for years to come.”
A tough first season
Sergio Pérez in practice at the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Photo: Wan Mikhail Roslan/ZUMA Press
The new deal comes in a hard debut year. Cadillac haven’t scored a point in 2026. Pérez’s best finish is 14th, and in Austin last weekend he was 19th, a lap down, while Bottas retired.
The team say they have improved steadily through the season, and that’s the bet Pérez is making: that the car will catch up while he’s still there to drive it. He’ll be 39 by the end of the new contract.
Financial terms weren’t announced, but the deal is understood to include a significant pay rise over the three years.
What about the younger drivers?
Not everyone wanted this. When Cadillac first picked two veterans, plenty of fans wanted a new American team to give a younger driver a chance instead. Now, with Pérez locked in until 2029, there’s only one Cadillac seat left to fight for: Valtteri Bottas’s.
Cadillac are not yet ready to commit to Bottas, not even for 2027. Bottas argues the team’s early reliability problems have made it hard to compare him fairly with Pérez. Three younger names have been linked with his seat, and one stands out.
Colton Herta: will he replace Bottas?
If Cadillac want a young driver, and an American one, Herta is the obvious answer.
The 26-year-old Californian is one of the most talented drivers to come out of US racing in years. He became the youngest winner in IndyCar history in 2019, at 18, at COTA of all places. He went on to win nine IndyCar races and take 16 poles, and finished runner-up to Alex Palou in 2024.
F1 has wanted him before. In 2022, Red Bull tried to put him in an AlphaTauri for 2023, but he didn’t have enough Super Licence points and the FIA refused to make an exception.
So for 2026 he gave up IndyCar to become Cadillac’s test driver and race in Formula 2 with Hitech, to earn his way in properly.
The Super Licence problem. He needs 40 points to race in F1. The documented count is 38, from his IndyCar results plus one point for each practice session where he does at least 100 km, though Cadillac say he has 39. He has driven in practice in Barcelona, Hungary, Monza and Austin, but the Monza run didn’t count: a hydraulic failure stopped him after five laps.
On Friday in Mexico he gets a fifth session, in Bottas’s car. If he completes 24 laps and Cadillac’s count is right, he reaches 40. The clock is ticking too: the 30 points he earned for second place in 2024 drop off on 1 January.
The case against. His F2 season has been tough, with no podiums and 19th in the standings. Some will say a driver who can’t win in F2 isn’t ready for F1, even if he’s spent years winning against some of the world’s best in IndyCar.
What Cadillac say. CEO Dan Towriss admitted in Austin that Bottas “has had a few races where he’s been off the race pace”. Asked if that meant Herta could get his chance, he replied: “Yeah, there’s always a chance.”
Our view: if the Super Licence comes through, Herta is the favourite for 2027. An American team with an American driver is the story Cadillac and its sponsors want, and Pérez’s new deal gives the team the experience to balance a rookie.
The other names
- Yuki Tsunoda, 26: out of a race seat since losing his place at Red Bull, with five seasons of F1 experience. The safe option.
- Frederik Vesti, 24: the 2023 Formula 2 runner-up, who has spent years waiting for an F1 chance.
Team boss Marcin Budkowski says Cadillac have spoken to “pretty much all” of the drivers on the market, so the second seat is far from settled.
Pérez in numbers
- Teams: Sauber, McLaren, Force India, Racing Point, Red Bull and now Cadillac
- Grand Prix wins: 6
- Starts: 300 after this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix
- Contract: until the end of 2029
The Mexico City Grand Prix is on Sunday 1 November. Going? Our Mexico City F1 circuit guide has the interactive map, the Metro and bus routes, and what you can bring in.
