Why is Cadillac F1 not considering Palow's candidacy?

      Alex Palow won the Indy 500 last Sunday, an impressive achievement in itself, marking his fifth victory in the first six IndyCar races of the season. At the same time, he is the current champion of the American series and now leads in the individual competition with such an advantage that few doubt Palou's next, fourth title.

      Of course, the world of motorsport has noticed this, and yesterday in the paddock of the autodromo in Barcelona, Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso praised the achievements of the 28-year-old compatriot.

      In general, it is clear that Alex Palou is a professional of the highest class, and he has been proving this for several years in a row, but it is all the more surprising that the Cadillac F1 project managers, who are creating a new Formula 1 team, are not negotiating with him.

      Gunther Steiner, who created Haas F1, the latest new team to join the ranks of the World Championship (also an American one, by the way), has his own explanation. He is convinced that at first, experienced racers are needed for such a project, and talent is the second question...

      "When you create a new team, you have to do a lot of things," the American edition of Racer quotes Steiner. – I wouldn't call them problems, but when a team is young, you have to solve a lot of tasks, and you just don't have time for drivers who don't have any experience in Formula 1.

      The fact is that you need to find your own direction of development, and if you also need to guide the riders, usually nothing good comes of it. Therefore, when we started our project, it was important for me to get drivers who already have experience driving Formula 1 cars. They can contribute to the development of the team, and this is what is most important in the first year of its existence.

      If you take a driver who has never competed in Formula 1 to a team that has also never competed in F1, then you will only harm him. Because your task is to develop the team, and you can't prioritize the drivers..."

      According to Steiner, Cadillac F1 understands this, so it is unlikely that they will invite American racers now. Dan Tauriss, the head of TWG Motorsports, who is leading the project to create a new team, spoke about the same thing, but in different words: "We intend to invite an American racer, but it is important for all of us that the choice is right, because it is important that this racer succeeds. We want this person to be focused on success and ready for it..."

      One of the drivers who piloted the American team's car in 2016, in the debut season of Haas in Formula 1, was Roman Grosjean, who at that time already had more than 80 Grand Prix experience with Renault and Lotus. After parting ways with Haas, the French racer continued his career in the United States and understands well the difference between the two series.

      "They are very different in terms of driving style,– says Grosjean. – In IndyCar, at least you can start the car sliding and tame it, overcoming strong manifestations of oversteer.

      In Formula 1, you need to act smoothly and precisely, to follow the trajectory more precisely, whereas in IndyCar you often change it. Here you can drive really aggressively, but driving a Formula 1 car with this approach won't last long.  

      If you invite a rider who has already competed in Europe to the IndyCar team, I think he will already have an understanding of the differences in cultures and mentality. I think in the USA, the racers are taken care of like family members, and that's nice. Whereas in Formula 1, the attitude is more businesslike – it's not that it's a bad thing, but it's just that in F1 you're more on your own.…

      I know there's a lot of talk about Colton Hurt right now. Palou also gets a lot of attention, of course. In general, there are guys who could compete in F1, but there were also those who moved to Europe, but could not achieve anything because there is a different mentality."

      According to Racer, Alex Palow is now fully focused on winning his third title in a row and is not seeking negotiations with Cadillac. However, it cannot be ruled out that the situation may change, and the parties will begin to approach each other. But that's not happening yet.