Cadillac left the Canadian Formula 1 GP with mixed feelings, after showing performance improvement but failing to turn it into a significant result. Sergio Perez retired from the race while fighting for positions in the midfield pack, while Valtteri Bottas finished only 16th after facing balance issues throughout the race.
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Even without scoring points, the North American team considered the Montreal round their best weekend since the start of the season. The updates brought to the car yielded an important performance gain, according to the drivers and team officials themselves.
Perez stated that the race started complicated due to the choice of intermediate tires at the start. Still, the Mexican believes the decision was understandable given the uncertain track conditions: “At the start we made a mistake with the intermediates, but it was a fifty-fifty decision on which path to take.”
After the stop, the Cadillac driver began a consistent recovery and managed to enter a direct fight with the Haas cars: “We were recovering and fighting with Esteban Ocon. Then I managed to pass the Haas and we had a good pace,” he commented.
The comeback, however, ended frustratingly with a mechanical problem: “Unfortunately we had a suspension failure and I had to retire,” lamented Perez. Despite the retirement, he highlighted the positive signs shown by the team in Canada: “We took a big step in the right direction this weekend and it was our most competitive round since the start of the season. Now we need to improve operationally to take advantage of this progress,” said the Mexican.
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On the other side of the garage, Bottas faced a difficult race and complained a lot about the car’s behavior. According to the Finn, Cadillac mainly suffered from excessive oversteer throughout the race: “It was a long and tough day. We had many balance problems and couldn’t fix the rear issues at any point,” he said.
Even far from the points zone, Bottas believes the team’s progress goes beyond the final result: “Sometimes results don’t show much progress, but it’s not just the car’s pace. We are improving in several areas and knew it would take time,” said the experienced driver, already looking ahead to the next round in two weeks.
The team principal, Graeme Lowdon, reinforced the positive outlook after the Canadian weekend. According to him, the new updates allowed Cadillac to compete at a pace similar to the midfield pack: “It was our most competitive weekend so far. We know where we need to improve operationally, but everything we do is being done for the first time. We will learn from this and come back even stronger for Monaco,” he added.
