As Cadillac makes its F1 debut, history shows new teams can win big or fail

By Canadian Press on March 4, 2026.

Cadillac might just be the best-prepared new team in Formula 1 history.

The General Motors-backed team racked up the virtual miles in detailed race simulations last year and was reliable in preseason testing with its new car, named for Mario Andretti, even if it’s likely to be fighting with struggling Aston Martin not to be last.

The rubber hits the road for real as the 11th team at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.

From a one-season wonder to a notorious disgrace, here is a look at some other debut seasons from F1 history for Cadillac to aspire to, or avoid:

Ferrari (1950)

Everyone starts somewhere. In the first world championship season, Ferrari was an emerging manufacturer in the shadow of Italian giants Alfa Romeo and Maserati. Alberto Ascari’s second-place finish at the Monaco Grand Prix made a statement that Ferrari was serious. José Froilán González brought Ferrari its first win a year later and Ascari became the team’s first champion in 1952. Ferrari is the only team to participate in every F1 season.

Jordan (1991)

When F1 had so many teams that pre-qualifying was needed to trim the field, you needed something special to stand out. Team boss Eddie Jordan, who died last year at the age of 76, was a cult figure in F1 for his strong opinions and loud shirts, and handed future seven-time champion Michael Schumacher a debut after his regular driver was arrested. Schumacher qualified seventh, putting himself and Jordan on the map. The popular Irish team stayed on the grid, winning four races, until a 2005 sale.

Andrea Moda (1992)

F1 had slow teams like Life, which never got past pre-qualifying. It had short-lived teams like Mastercard Lola, which lasted one qualifying session. Andrea Moda still stands out. Its car, a years-old design, broke down regularly — once before leaving the pit lane — and was hopelessly slow. The team missed a race because its engines didn’t arrive and another when its trucks were stuck in traffic, was accused by one driver of knowingly fitting damaged steering to his car and was eventually excluded from F1 mid-season.

Brawn (2009)

F1’s ultimate Cinderella story began when Honda wanted to shut down its team to save money as the global economy plummeted. Team principal Ross Brawn persuaded Honda to accept a management buyout for one pound. In a plain white car with almost no sponsors but with a game-changing “double diffuser” innovation that left other teams scrambling to copy it, Jenson Button won Brawn’s first race in Australia. He held off Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel to take the championship in the team’s first and only season. Brawn then sold his team to Mercedes and it has won eight more constructors’ titles since.

Haas (2016)

American teams have a patchy history in F1. The last to win a race was Penske in 1976, while USF1 never even made the grid before running out of cash in 2010. That made it all the more surprising when the next U.S. entry, Haas, didn’t just survive in F1, it celebrated sixth- and fifth-place finishes in its first two races with Romain Grosjean at the wheel. While Cadillac is building a new headquarters in Indiana, Haas bases much of its key operations in Europe, with close ties to Ferrari and a new partnership with Toyota.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

James Ellingworth, The Associated Press

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