Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas backed by former McLaren man as the ideal lineup for Cadillac in 2026

Former McLaren man Juan Pablo Montoya feels Cadillac should pick the pair of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas as their driver lineup for the 2026 F1 season. Much has been made about the team and the way things have continued to evolve over a period of time.

Initially, there were even objections simply regarding the existence of the team, but since the call has been made, there has been an effort to prepare for the first race of the 2026 F1 season. One of the key components for a new team is always going to be the drivers, and when it comes to that, names like Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas have been thrown around in multiple reports.

There are different approaches that a team could take when it comes to this. The first is that the team forms a lineup that has an experienced driver accompanied by a bright young talent. Then the other approach is for the team to have two experienced heads in the team who are willing to spend the time helping the project grow.

Talking to AS Colombia, Juan Pablo Montoya, who raced for McLaren in the 2005 and partial 2006 F1 seasons, made it clear that the approach he would prefer is the one where he picks the duo of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas, with one of the two on a one-year contract. He said,

"Yes, for me, I think that’s the pair. And the way I think they should do it is sign one for two years and the other for one year. Commit one for two or three years and then start looking for someone younger who can be more of a future for them."

He added,

“Because the two drivers they have would be very good, but they’re drivers that in two or three years will already be thinking about stopping. But for the beginning of the team, it would be the ideal pair.”

---

Give Sergio Perez the multi-year contract and Valtteri Bottas a single year

When questioned about who he would give a two-year contract to, Juan Pablo Montoya leaned towards Sergio Perez, as he felt that the Mexican would be the right fit in terms of the market he represents. Talking about how Bottas can sometimes lack motivation, Montoya said,

“Of the two, Checo. I think Checo would fit them a little better with the profile and everything, but Bottas is also very fast. So there you have to see exactly. Exactly. It depends on how motivated Valtteri is, because I think Valtteri is very fast and can be faster than Checo, but Valtteri is very emotional, it depends on the day.”

Both Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are on the market right now, as neither has a seat for next season. Getting both of them would help Cadillac have an experienced pair that can help the team grow and be a perfect guide in the early phases, where there would be a lot of growing pains in the team.