Sergio Perez reveals personal goal behind Cadillac F1 return after tough Red Bull stint
Sergio Perez has revealed that his return to Formula 1 with Cadillac was fuelled by a desire to prove he remains “one of the best” in the championship, following a mentally taxing end to his Red Bull tenure.
After taking a much-needed year out to recharge from what he described as a “toxic” final six months at the Milton Keynes outfit, the Mexican driver returned to the grid with the all-new American outfit for the 2026 season.
Speaking on the High Performance podcast, Perez explained: “When the project with Cadillac came, I thought, ‘This is a massive project; this is a massive brand.’ And when I met Dan [Towriss], I knew this guy is very competitive, and he will do whatever it takes to take it to a very good level.
“It can be my project as well. I can be part of it and I can show myself that I’m one of the best and I want to do that because I always believe that I’m one of the best on the grid.
“But obviously, the period at Red Bull takes that confidence from you when you are not delivering and your team-mate is winning and so on. And I always knew what the issues were, but it takes confidence away from you. That’s why I wanted to come back.”
Sergio Perez, Cadillac Racing
Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images
Now helping to build the Cadillac operation from the ground up, Perez is well aware of the challenges facing the team. Despite the squad still finding its feet, he is confident of its long-term trajectory.
“Of course, it’s very early days,” he acknowledged at the time of recording the podcast. “We are only on our sixth race and there is a sort of culture that is building. But I can see that the owners will not stop until they do that.
“You’re talking about General Motors and TWG. There are two great forces that are not going to stop until they get there.”
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