Cadillac set clear F1 expectations stance in 'miracle' update

Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon believes the American squad has developed a "really good platform" to build on as it heads into its debut F1 season.

The 60-year-old highlighted that the fledgling team has not encountered any causes for "massive concern" over the Barcelona shakedown and the first three days of official testing at the Bahrain International Circuit.

In Sakhir, Cadillac was 10th fastest, with only Aston Martin failing to post a quicker lap time, but Valtteri Bottas was 17th quickest of the 22 runners, and Lowdon was keen to underline the positive start.

Speaking to media, including RacingNews365, he said: "I think that's a really good platform for us to build on.

"If we had a serious or obvious reliability issue, then that would be a massive concern.

"Equally, if we had a really predominant handling issue or something like that, then that would be a concern. And we generally don't have any of that.

"I feel like we've got a platform that we can really build on here."

A 'really positive start' but no miracle?

Lowdon maintained that throughout the process of launching F1's newest team and pre-season, Cadillac has stayed grounded and not set unrealistic expectations, arguing that it would take a "miracle" to defy what is anticipated of the first new F1 team in a decade.

"What makes pre-season testing so interesting is nobody really knows where, where the pecking order is," he said.

"We're very realistic about the performance and just how difficult it is to generate that performance, and also very realistic about where some of the teams are going to be.

"But I firmly believe now we've got a platform that, as a team, we can really start moving forward on - and I think that's probably the most that you could ever ask for from a new team, unless there's some complete miracle.

"We're dealing with the same laws of physics as every other team, we're in a cost-capped environment, we've had to expend a huge amount of effort and energy as a team just to start as a new team, and I think to absorb all of that and have a platform that I feel we can build on. I think that's a really, really positive start."