After a difficult first season back in Formula One, Valtteri Bottas' future at Cadillac could already be under serious pressure, despite the fact he signed a long-term deal with the team ahead of the 2026 calendar.

Despite rarely being competitive enough to fight for the point-scoring positions, Sergio Perez has more than shown his quality over Bottas, which leaves his future in doubt. However, one name has already been confirmed not to be joining the team.

Cadillac Woes in 2026 Lead to Likely Changes

Both drivers became renowned for being the partner to world champions Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. They never really troubled their teammates' championship opportunities, and with that there's always been questions over how good they actually are.

Bottas had a stint out of the circus that is Formula One, as his time at Sauber ended poorly. Meanwhile, Perez was ousted from Red Bull, as they favoured a younger driver to complement Verstappen. All roads lead to Cadillac, where they are now, though, few fans and pundits would have foreseen the demolition job.

While the pair are fairly close in qualifying, the Mexican edges his counterpart by 10 to eight in the head-to-head fight. However, it is in race trim where Perez comes alive and leaves Bottas struggling in comparison.

The lack of performance has led to the possibility of the Finnish driver leaving. According to The Race, the team may choose to pay Bottas off and, as a result, find a new driver to partner Perez in 2027. This naturally leads to the rumour mill beginning to start, especially with the names of drivers on the fringes of F1 now being floated around.

Cadillac Make Final Esteban Ocon Decision For Vacant Seat

Esteban Ocon has been linked with a move to the team, especially as his former Alpine boss Marcin Budkouwski now runs the Cadillac programme. However, according to numerous reports, the Frenchman won't be joining Cadillac from next season, either as Perez's partner, or as a reserve driver.

If Cadillac do eventually choose to replace Bottas, it will be between Colton Herta and Yuki Tsunoda as potential replacements. The latter has decent experience, and proved he still has something to offer in his little three-race comeback when Isack Hadjar was out injured.

For Herta, he chose to leave IndyCar in pursuit of an F1 contract, a decision which hasn't seemed to pay off yet, as he has struggled in Formula 2. He also doesn't have the amount of Super License points needed yet, but with his constant free practice appearances for the team, he should be able to get there.

Cadillac now have a big decision. Do they opt for experience or potential? It is difficult, and they will be desperate to field an American driver after so long, but with Tsunoda's proven track record in F1, they may go the way of experience.