WEBVTT - Cadillac Formula 1 Team CEO Dan Towriss Talks Joining Motor Sports

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<v Speaker 1>Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

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<v Speaker 2>An iconic American luxury brand is joining Formula One next year.

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<v Speaker 2>GM's Cadillac team will make its debut with two superstar drivers,

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<v Speaker 2>ten time Grand Prix winner Valteri Botas and six time

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<v Speaker 2>Grand Prix winner Sergio Checko Perez here with us now

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<v Speaker 2>is Cadillac f One CEO Dan Towis. It's great to

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<v Speaker 2>have you here with us. I'd love to first just

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<v Speaker 2>get a little bit of a background check on how

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<v Speaker 2>you got into this business, from running Gamebridge, from being

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<v Speaker 2>an insurance executive to now running teams across NASCAR, IndyCar

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<v Speaker 2>and starting next to year Formula one.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah.

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<v Speaker 4>So it really started in sponsorship, you know, with the

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<v Speaker 4>team and a partnership with Andretti. But then kind of

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<v Speaker 4>when we look at TWG Global, the parent of our company,

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<v Speaker 4>and what Mark Walter is built in a sports media company,

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<v Speaker 4>we saw a thesis in motorsport to you know, to

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<v Speaker 4>get involved, and you know it's really focused on Formula one,

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<v Speaker 4>but not just Formula One. It's really every major motorsport globally,

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<v Speaker 4>from ULSTRAI, NBA supercars, to sports cars, NASCAR, Indiecar, Formulae

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<v Speaker 4>and now Formula one, so we're very excited about that.

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<v Speaker 2>So it's it's I think really cool that you have

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<v Speaker 2>the resume you do, because I was when I talked

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<v Speaker 2>to Mark Royce, I asked him, how do you convert

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<v Speaker 2>motorsports fans into buyers of Chevy's Cadillacs corvettes? What have you?

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<v Speaker 3>You know?

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<v Speaker 2>Because you run this insurance company and that's how you

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<v Speaker 2>get your start here. I guess you've had great experience

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<v Speaker 2>in doing those conversions. Now you hire people like Valcheri Botas.

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<v Speaker 2>I want to take a look at the tweet that

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<v Speaker 2>he put out this morning. This is a guy who

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<v Speaker 2>not only is he an incredibly talented driver, obviously a

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<v Speaker 2>Grand Prix winner, but he knows marketing too.

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<v Speaker 3>This is what he posted this more. I guess he

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<v Speaker 3>gets it. He's a education to an American brand. Here.

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<v Speaker 4>Yeah, we're so excited about these two. I mean, they're

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<v Speaker 4>both you know, characters. You know, they have storied careers

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<v Speaker 4>in Formula one, but they're not done.

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<v Speaker 3>This is the next chapter. You know.

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<v Speaker 4>They're the chosen two for the Cadillac Formula One team

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<v Speaker 4>to hit the grid in twenty twenty six, and we're

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<v Speaker 4>super excited about them.

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<v Speaker 1>So how long are you giving the team before you

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<v Speaker 1>expect that you're going to win a race or a championship.

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<v Speaker 4>No, it is going to be a process. I mean,

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<v Speaker 4>Formula one is the pinnacle of motorsport. It's so difficult.

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<v Speaker 4>The smallest difference can make a huge difference on track.

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<v Speaker 4>But I think that's where their experience comes in. You know,

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<v Speaker 4>we'll have over a thousand people working on this team,

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<v Speaker 4>and so a lot of times people just think about

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<v Speaker 4>the driver of the car. But it's a team sport,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, and so that leadership and experience knowing what

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<v Speaker 4>to expect for a brand new team. So even though

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<v Speaker 4>we have all these experienced people in Formula one, they've

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<v Speaker 4>got to work together. We've got to build team chemistry,

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<v Speaker 4>and so check O and Valtry, you know, are the

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<v Speaker 4>perfect choice to help. You know, just bring that experience,

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<v Speaker 4>get feedback on the car, get the team working together.

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<v Speaker 4>They know what to expect, they've been there before.

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<v Speaker 2>So you're going to kick it off with Ferrari power trains.

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<v Speaker 2>You bring your own Cadillac power trains in a few

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<v Speaker 2>years down the road. But I'm guessing you're gonna have

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<v Speaker 2>to pay almost half a billion dollars to get in

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<v Speaker 2>and then what two point fifty a year?

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<v Speaker 3>How long until you think you can become champions?

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<v Speaker 4>You know it's going to take a few years, but

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<v Speaker 4>we're very excited about that. We're committed to this process.

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<v Speaker 4>It is a multi billion dollar investment in total. You know,

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<v Speaker 4>we'll have over six hundred thousand square feet of manufacturing

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<v Speaker 4>under roof in the US between Indianapolis and Charlotte, between

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<v Speaker 4>the team and the power unit company and all those

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<v Speaker 4>people working together. We also have a base of operations

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<v Speaker 4>in Silverston, so this is a global operation for Cadillac

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<v Speaker 4>Formula one and so really when we hit the grid,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, it's a new chassis and a new power

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<v Speaker 4>unit next year, so it kind of mixes up the

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<v Speaker 4>competitive landscape in Formula one, and so we get to

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<v Speaker 4>figure out where, you know, where do we stack up

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<v Speaker 4>against these teams. None of these cars will have been

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<v Speaker 4>on the track together when we get there, and then

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<v Speaker 4>what I'll be looking at is what does our you know,

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<v Speaker 4>what does our progress look like? What's the upward trajectory

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<v Speaker 4>of that team? Because that really gets to the question

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<v Speaker 4>of how long till we run a race? You know,

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<v Speaker 4>how long till we get on a podium. But the

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<v Speaker 4>ambitions for this team are high and the resources are tremendous,

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<v Speaker 4>and so together with General Motors, with Mark Royce and

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<v Speaker 4>the tremendous team there, Mary and Mark, you know, we're

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<v Speaker 4>going to be working hard to make sure that we're

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<v Speaker 4>competing at the top of the food chain in Formula one.

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<v Speaker 2>I wonder what this means for the Cadillac brand, because

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<v Speaker 2>all right, they have had in the past, I guess

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<v Speaker 2>the Monster in the nineteen fifties at Lamar and of

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<v Speaker 2>course I just went to Lamal this year to see

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<v Speaker 2>them with Team Joda and their hypercar is amazing. But

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<v Speaker 2>you don't you hadn't previously thought about them as a

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<v Speaker 2>sports car brand. Obviously they had the CTSV and now

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<v Speaker 2>they have the Black Wing, which are you know, Krem

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<v Speaker 2>de la Crem.

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<v Speaker 3>But what do you think this does for Cadillac sales?

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<v Speaker 4>Well, I think it's they're really pushing technology and innovation,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, with this news series of cars that they're

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<v Speaker 4>that they're coming out with, and I think, you know,

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<v Speaker 4>Cadillac continues to see their market share increasing, you know,

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<v Speaker 4>wrap quite rapidly, So I think it's the perfect time

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<v Speaker 4>for Cadillac to come into Formula one to really even

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<v Speaker 4>start to push a younger demographic that we're seeing, you know,

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<v Speaker 4>the growth in Formula one and so and so. I think,

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<v Speaker 4>as I've talked two fans, everyone has a Cadillac story,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, and so there's a strong connection to that brand.

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<v Speaker 4>So combined with the new products that Cadillac's coming out with,

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<v Speaker 4>and then the relevancy of being in Formula one competing

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<v Speaker 4>against Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Aston, Martin and the likes, I

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<v Speaker 4>think it's a It's a good combination for.

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<v Speaker 2>Cadillac and gonna be an amazing rivalry with Ford. I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>I was thinking of Lamm about how cool it will

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<v Speaker 2>be when Ford goes into the HyperCard. But that's only

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<v Speaker 2>for like niche like totally dedicated car freaks. This is

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<v Speaker 2>F one now, I mean, one of the most popular

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<v Speaker 2>in America.

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<v Speaker 3>It's up there with NASCAR now, I think. And Ford's

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<v Speaker 3>going to enter one next year too.

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<v Speaker 2>So how do you feel about that Crosstown rivalry GM versus.

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<v Speaker 4>You know, it's interesting, it's very different. I think Ford's

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<v Speaker 4>partnership with Red Bull is at a much different level.

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<v Speaker 4>I think what we have with GM. Here is is

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<v Speaker 4>an equity partnership, not a sponsorship. They're integration, they're leading

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<v Speaker 4>the power unit development, They're not assisting in the power

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<v Speaker 4>unit development. So the participation of GM and Cadillac in

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<v Speaker 4>this versus Ford and Red Bull very very different. But yeah,

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<v Speaker 4>you still have these American motorsport powers, automobile you know powers,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, going.

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<v Speaker 3>Head to head.

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<v Speaker 4>But then when you think about you've got one in

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<v Speaker 4>seven Americans that identify as a fan in Formula ones.

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<v Speaker 4>That's over fifty million Americans say they're a fan of

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<v Speaker 4>Formula one, but they're not yet watching races. So the

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<v Speaker 4>real key is going to be how do we convert

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<v Speaker 4>those fans into race watching fans. How do we convert

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<v Speaker 4>them into Cadillac fans, which I think will then they'll

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<v Speaker 4>see the bump in you know, in car sales.

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<v Speaker 3>All Right, I'm pretty excited.

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<v Speaker 2>I know you can you tell Katie, you can tell yes, Dan,

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<v Speaker 2>thanks so much for joining us, Dan Towers there of

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<v Speaker 2>Cadillac F one