Sergio Perez to test Ferrari F1 car as odd rule exploited

Sergio Perez will return to F1 machinery in a test with Ferrari at Imola in November as part of Cadillac’s preparations.

Cadillac will join the F1 grid in 2026 as the 11th team, featuring a driver lineup of Perez and Valtteri Bottas, while also being powered by Ferrari engines.

It is this partnership with Ferrari that will help the team gain experience out on track, as Cadillac will test a 2023 Ferrari F1 car with Perez at Imola on November 13-14.

Two test sessions are reportedly planned as their mechanics and race engineers assemble, with Ferrari allowed to test two-year-old machinery and have given two of their test days to their new customer team in a quirky rule.

The test will be the first time Perez will get behind the wheel of an F1 car since his last race with Red Bull at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the testing schedule aimed towards gelling the new Cadillac team together.

Perez confirms Ferrari test

Perez has been jetting between Cadillac’s headquarters in Charlotte to the team’s Silverstone base, where he has already been involved in simulator work and the team have been simulating race weekend operations.

The Mexican recently took part in a charity football match in Mexico City, where he confirmed the Ferrari test and revealed a full testing program will begin in January 2026 with Cadillac.

“We’ll have some testing sessions in November,” Perez said.

“They’ll be very useful because we’ll be able to work with the mechanics and engineers to have the whole team ready for the testing program that begins in January - very early in the year - where we’ll already be at 100 per cent.”

The 35-year-old also reflected positively about the new environment at Cadillac, and added: “It’s always great to have a team that listens to you, supports you, and values you. That’s what every driver dreams of having.”

Perez was axed from Red Bull after a disappointing turn of form during the 2024 season, but so far his successors Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda have fared even worse than the Mexican driver.

His racing career with Cadillac is a chance for Perez to rewrite the script and end his F1 journey on a high, as he takes on the challenge of helping a new team build from scratch.

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