Valtteri Bottas has opened up about his inability to get to grips with the MAC-26 so far, Cadillac’s correlation issues in 2026, and his growing appreciation for how the big F1 teams run their operations in the sport.
After staying on the sidelines as a reserve driver for Mercedes in 2025 following his Sauber exit, Bottas secured a full-time race seat for the 2026 campaign with newcomers Cadillac.
However, the Finn’s return to the F1 grid has been anything but smooth sailing. He has failed to score a single point in the seven rounds thus far, with his best finish of P13 coming at the Chinese GP back in March.
“A long way to go” before Bottas becomes comfortable in Cadillac’s 2026 F1 challenger
Speaking in a print media session ahead of the 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya GP, Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas acknowledged how he has struggled to make the most of his second lease on life at the pinnacle of motorsport and that F1 has yet to see the best of him this season.
The 36-year-old stated how he doesn’t feel comfortable in the car yet and that deciding on the apt set-up directions has been a persistent challenge. Additionally, he highlighted the unpredictable behaviour of the MAC-26 on the track.
Bottas also referred to the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix and asserted that the lack of adequate running at the start of the season was detrimental to his search for momentum.
While he appeared hopeful that they can now establish a steady rhythm, gain a deeper understanding of the issues, and work towards potential solutions, the 10-time race winner, nonetheless, conceded that they still have a long road ahead before he finds his bearings.
“Yeah, I would say so. It definitely hasn’t come my way yet. A lot of it is the inconsistency on the set-up. Even some parts, you know, the car quite often feels different to what you expect.
“Also, at the beginning of the year, having such big gaps between the races, not spending that much time on track hasn’t helped.
“But I’m really hoping that now we get to a better flow, a better rhythm, we understand better the issues we’ve been having with the car and go from there. There’s still a long way to go.”
Cadillac’s correlation issues
Asked if the MAC-26’s erratic behaviour is making it harder to prepare for a race weekend in 2026, Valtteri Bottas shed more light on the correlation troubles Cadillac are facing during the ongoing F1 campaign.
Revealing that the correlation between findings from Cadillac’s simulator and on-track performance is often inaccurate, the Finn underlined how the initial set-up direction undergoes a massive change after the first practice session, which further compounds their balance issues for the rest of the weekend.
Admitting they had already anticipated these challenges, Bottas reiterated that F1’s eleventh team is optimistic about remedying their problems soon and getting into a groove.
“Yeah, you’re kind of gonna be prepared for anything, you know, any kind of balance.
“Some of the simulator work we’ve done, it hasn’t yet been really matching the balance we’re getting on track. So, then we already start with big setup changes after FP1.
“It’s been a challenge, but kind of expected as well.
“Like I said, hopefully we’ll get on top of things soon and things are gonna be more of a rhythm.”
Bottas has more appreciation for the big F1 teams after observing Cadillac’s troubles in 2026
In terms of whether Cadillac’s hurdles in 2026 are making him appreciate even more the hard work the established F1 teams had initially put into to run like well-oiled machines today, Valtteri Bottas responded in the affirmative.
Maintaining that he was well aware of the teething problems they would encounter and the amount of troubleshooting—albeit more than expected—they would have to perform, the 36-year-old commented that he is really appreciative of how the big teams appear to run their operations so seamlessly.
Bottas also claimed that drivers don’t ponder some of the behind-the-scenes processes while driving for a smooth-running top team. Furthermore, he underlined how those teams have attained their current status by building the fundamental frameworks from the ground up a long time ago.
Mentioning how cool it has been to gain in-depth knowledge about the inner workings of an F1 team this season, Bottas admitted that Cadillac still have considerable work to do, despite the step forward they have taken so far.
“Yeah, I knew we had to go through this phase and there’s been a lot of problem solving. Maybe even more than I thought, but I kind of knew what I was jumping into.
“But absolutely, it makes me really appreciate the big teams, how everything works so well.
“And you don’t think about some of the stuff when you’re in a team that just works perfectly enough. There’s so much going on in the background, the preparation, the problem solving. They’ve had to do it 20 years ago and it keeps going.
“I’ve learned a lot this year about how a Formula 1 team works, and it’s quite cool to see that. We’ve made big steps so far as a team, but we still have a lot of work to do.”
