Red Bull set to snatch American star from Cadillac with surprise swoop | F1 | Sport

Cadillac look set to miss out on signing talented American junior Ugo Ugochukwu. The 19-year-old, who leads the championship standings in Formula 3 heading into this weekend’s action at the Hungarian Grand Prix, has long been linked with the outfit which has made no secret of its desire to field an American driver in Formula 1.

At the top of their list is Colton Herta, the nine-time IndyCar race winner who traded in his comfortable seat at the pinnacle of single-seater motorsport in the USA for a drive in Formula 2 this year in a bid to land the superlicence he need to make the step up. It has been a difficult season so far, however, yielding just 26 points from the first 16 races.

As it stands, Herta needs to do more to land the superlicence he requires to race in F1. He is currently also Cadillac’s test driver and will complete at least four free practice sessions this year, the latest of which was in Budapest on Friday, as the team does everything it can to help the former IndyCar star become eligible to race.

But Herta’s struggles have led to increased speculation that Cadillac would look at alternative candidates for an American driver in the future. Ugochukwu’s strong performance in F3 this year has made him an ideal candidate, while he is available to sign with an F1 team having departed the McLaren driver development programme late last year.

But he will not be a free agent for much longer with Red Bull poised to sign the teenager to its academy. As reported by PlanetF1, Ugochukwu is set to become the latest junior driver developed by the Red Bull programme and is set to step up to Formula 2 next year, likely with Campos Racing who he currently represents in F3.

Speaking in Budapest about his future, Ugochukwu said: “There’s been a lot of conversations around, but I think for myself right now, it’s not a main topic on my mind or something that needs to be discussed. I’m still focusing on my F3 year and finishing this year on a high. We still have F2, which is the next step in the feeder series, which comes first, so that’s what I’m focusing on right now.”

Ugochukwu, who was born in New York City and represents the USA on track while also having Nigerian and Italian heritage, is being primed to fill the seat that will likely become available in F2 at Campos next year. It is currently filled by Nikola Tsolov who is the red-hot favourite to win the title and so will become ineligible to race in the series again in 2027.

Bulgarian Tsolov may have to spend some time on the sidelines, though, with no room likely to be available at either of Red Bull’s F1 teams. Assuming Max Verstappen stays, he will continue to be partnered by Isack Hadjar who has impressed in his first season in that difficult seat, while both Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad have performed well for Racing Bulls so far in 2026.