‘We always knew Barcelona was going to show what we are lacking’ admits Perez

Sergio Perez says the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix weekend highlighted where Cadillac are lacking, as the new team struggled to perform under the heat of the Spanish sun.

The hot temperatures and high-speed layout of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya proved a challenge for the American outfit, who only got one car to the chequered flag on Sunday.

Overheating issues ended Bottas' race after just 15 laps, the Finn having also suffered a brake issue during Free Practice 3 which sent him into the gravel at Turn 10 and caused a red flag.

"We had to stop the car, it was precautionary. We saw an issue with some overheating issue again. That's it, sadly. Was a pretty short race for me," said Bottas, who started P20 and directly behind Perez.

"Tough weekend, many issues and now two weekends in a row. But the positive thing, the pit stop was great and we seemed a bit closer in Qualifying, but race pace we still have to work on."

Perez meanwhile managed to reach the chequered flag in Sunday's 66-lap race, but was three laps down in P14 as Cadillac suffered with tyre management and a general lack of pace.

The Mexican was also on the back foot from the outset of the weekend, having missed FP1 as Cadillac reserve driver Colton Herta was handed a rookie session as per the 2026 regulations.

"It was not a very easy start, we had a lot of wheel spin, we lost a few positions, we got them back around Lap 1 but then from that point on, we were on the tail of Alex [Albon] for the entire first stint," said Perez, who added that the team was always prepared for Barcelona to highlight the weaknesses in their car.

"The hard tyre was really bad on us, we lost ground and then with the lapped events and so on, we lost a bit of ground to the Williams.

"I think we always knew that Barcelona was going to show what we are lacking and I think we've got some work to do. We have a pretty good idea on what's happening and we confirmed that today."