After the GP of Miami, Sergio Pérez didn’t dress it up as a moral victory. Still, he did something more useful for a team in its 2026 season debut: he put a spotlight on what’s working, and then slapped the brakes on what isn’t. According to Pérez, the Cadillac is showing signs of real evolution, and we’ve covered this kind of mid-season swing in Jogo Hoje’s Formula 1 coverage as the cars start to reveal their true character.
The headline is optimistic with caution. The 16th place doesn’t look like a leap on paper, but the way Pérez explained the race pace tells a sharper story: when degradação de pneus isn’t biting yet, they can stay close to the intermediate field. Then the tyres start to fall off, and the gap grows fast. That’s not just frustration, it’s a diagnosis.
What Pérez said after the GP of Miami
Pérez said Cadillac is “moving in the right direction” as it learns its technical package for the season. His confidence isn’t blind. He immediately linked progress to a specific target: tyre wear.
“We were wearing the tyres too much, and I also think we chose the hard compound, when maybe the soft compound would have been the better option. It’s something we need to analyse, but we also need to understand this package if we want to evolve further up to Canada,” Pérez said.
Then he went even more granular. In his view, the team’s short-term priority is to solve degradação de pneus, not just chase lap time. “We need to understand the car better and try to bring more efficient solutions. We don’t have much time, but one of the priorities in the short term is exactly degradation. We have some ideas, but putting everything together will be the biggest job for the team in the next few weeks,” he added.
What 16th place reveals about Cadillac
Let’s be honest: 16th is not where you want to park your season narrative. But as an Analyst Tactic, I’d argue the result is less important than the pattern Pérez described. He’s effectively telling us Cadillac can manufacture speed in the early phase of a stint, but can’t hold it when the performance window closes.
That matters because Cadillac isn’t racing in isolation. The intermediate field is where points are realistically fought for in 2026, and Pérez is saying they can “hang” for stretches. The problem is that opponents can then surge once their tyres behave and their strategy breathes. Translation: Cadillac’s current weakness is consistency across the full race strategy, not just peak pace.
Where tyre strategy and degradation weighed on the race
Pérez’s comments about the tyre choice read like a tactical post-mortem. If the team used the hard compound and it turned out to be the wrong tool, the consequences show up exactly where fans don’t like them: in the second half of stints, when degradação de pneus starts eroding braking stability and traction.
He also hinted at the decision-making pressure. Miami’s stint management is unforgiving, and when you pick a compound that doesn’t match the car’s current balance, the tyres can punish you even if the first laps look okay. That’s why he flagged the need to “analyse” the choice, but also to understand the broader package. In other words, it wasn’t just a call on the day. It’s a mismatch between the car’s current setup and how the tyres respond.
And yes, he floated the possibility that the soft compound might have been better. Whether that’s fully correct or not, the underlying message is clear: Cadillac needs to stop treating degradation like a side quest. For a team still decoding its limits, tyre behaviour is the main quest.
Why the GP of Canada becomes a real test
With the GP of Canada scheduled for 22 to 24 May and sitting as the quinta etapa of the 2026 season, this is where the learning curve gets judged. Canada tends to reward confidence in tyre management and punishes teams that rely on “good moments” instead of a dependable race pace over stints.
Pérez’s urgency is telling. Cadillac doesn’t have unlimited experimentation time. He’s basically saying: we need to lock in solutions that improve degradation quickly, or we’ll keep losing positions in the exact segment where rivals can build momentum. And if the team can’t widen their performance window, they’ll remain trapped in a cycle of short bursts followed by costly fade.
So the Canadian weekend isn’t just another race. It’s a stress test of whether the progress they saw in Miami can survive a different track rhythm and a different tyre workload.
The comparison with Aston Martin and what it exposes
Pérez didn’t name-check Aston Martin for drama. He did it because the midfield hierarchy is already forming, and Cadillac can’t afford to be reactive.
He said: “You can see that in some moments, while degradation doesn’t weigh so much, we can go with the intermediate field. But then they can increase their pace a lot. And yes, it’s still a long season, but we’re in a rush to find performance, because we know Aston Martin will evolve and we don’t want to fall behind.”
That’s the tactical reality: when a rival is bringing development and you’re still stabilising tyre behaviour, every weekend becomes a double penalty. You’re not only trying to catch up; you’re also trying to prevent the gap from widening while your own car’s learning phase continues.
In Pérez’s framing, Cadillac’s job is to keep pace in the departments that matter, not just the raw lap time. If the team can hold tyre performance longer, the strategy stops being a guess and starts being a plan.
What the Cadillac team needs to solve in the next weeks
Based on Pérez’s own words, the to-do list is pretty direct, and it’s not glamorous. It’s mostly systems work: understanding the car, matching setup to tyre response, and aligning stint plan with what the tyres actually do.
- Reduce degradação de pneus so the car can keep a stable race pace deeper into stints.
- Validate tyre selection logic, especially when the team considers the hard compound versus the soft compound under Miami-style demands.
- Shorten the time between feedback, setup changes, and track execution so the performance window is found faster.
- Turn ideas into repeatable race strategy, not one-off results.
Cadillac has the ingredients for mid-pack runs, but the recipe needs consistency. Otherwise, they’ll keep winning “moments” and losing positions.
O Veredito Jogo Hoje
Miami gave Cadillac a glimpse of something rare: not just speed, but the ability to live near the intermediate field before the tyres take over the script. Pérez’s quotes feel like a team that finally found the right direction—then immediately realised the steering still needs calibration. If they don’t solve degradation fast, Canada will expose the difference between “promising bursts” and real points-contending rhythm. In 2026, that gap is ruthless.
Perguntas Frequentes
What did Sergio Pérez say about Cadillac after the GP of Miami?
Pérez said Cadillac is improving and moving in the right direction, but he stressed that the team must cut degradação de pneus and better understand its technical package before the next races.
What was the main problem for Cadillac in the race?
According to Pérez, the biggest issue was excessive tyre wear. He also suggested that choosing the hard compound might have been a strategic mistake, when the soft compound could have suited the situation better.
Why will the GP of Canada be important for the team?
Because it’s the quinta etapa of the season and arrives quickly after Miami. Pérez made it clear the team is racing against time to improve tyre degradation, and Canada will test whether the progress can translate into a steadier race pace and smarter race strategy.
