Showed competitive race pace vs Williams at Madring despite reliability issues

Perez said his car matched and briefly outpaced Williams’ Albon in the Spanish GP stints, validating encouraging race‑pace data; reliability (including a terminal water leak) remains the principal barrier to scoring points.

In this brief: 3 sections 2 min read

- Both drivers ran the same tyre strategy (mediums then hards under a VSC).
- Data sample: Perez ~0.403s/lap slower in first stint, ~0.351s/lap quicker on the hard‑tyre second stint.
- Perez retired with a water‑system fault before the stint comparison could convert to a points finish.
- Cadillac recorded 11 retirements/non‑starts so far in 2026 (source's season tally).
- Valtteri Bottas reported high degradation and brake‑temperature management issues that forced lift‑and‑coast driving.
- The team believes the car is not yet robust enough to consistently hold midfield positions.
- Motorsport analysis suggests high‑speed, lower‑downforce circuits could mask current aerodynamic deficits.
- Cadillac will aim to convert the demonstrated race pace into finishes by addressing reliability ahead of Azerbaijan.

Read full analysis on motorsport.com

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