Bottas confirms 'issues' during Cadillac's Barcelona shakedown debut

Valtteri Bottas has confirmed that Cadillac encountered "some issues" during the opening session of Formula 1's official shakedown test in Barcelona. The team focused on data collection and system debugging rather than performance, with Bottas completing 33 laps as the new outfit begins its preparations for the championship.

Why it matters:

For an incoming team like Cadillac, the initial shakedown is not about setting lap times but ensuring the car functions fundamentally. Identifying and resolving these early reliability gremlins is crucial to building a stable platform for development ahead of their competitive debut.

The details:

• Bottas set a best time of 1m 24.651s, significantly off the pace of Red Bull's Isack Hadjar, though lap times were irrelevant for the session.
• Challenging Conditions: The driver noted that cold morning temperatures made it difficult to get the tires into the optimal operating window.
• Debugging Phase: Bottas described the day as a 'de-bugging' process, revealing that issues persisted throughout the morning.
• Widespread Issues: The Finn pointed out that Cadillac was not alone in facing problems, noting that other teams running on the first day also experienced similar setbacks.

What's next:

Cadillac will look to resolve the identified issues to increase their running mileage over the remaining days of the test. As the team gains confidence in the package, the focus will shift from basic system checks to more performance-oriented data gathering.