Formula One have formally approved the arrival of a new team in the form of Cadillac F1, with the new team including a set-up with a Silverstone base.
The team, who is backed by US motor corporation General Motors, formally agreed a deal in principle to join the Formula One grid from 2026 with the sport’s promoters Formula One Management in November.
Formal confirmation has now been reached between world motorsport’s governing body the FIA and FOM, with Cadillac F1 to become the grid’s 11th team from 2026 onwards.
The move will see Cadillac become the first new entry to the Formula One grid since Haas joined in 2016.
In a statement on the F1 website, Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1, said: “As we said in November, the commitment by General Motors to bring a Cadillac team to Formula 1 was an important and positive demonstration of the evolution of our sport.
“I want to thank GM and TWG Motorsports for their constructive engagement over many months and look forward to welcoming the team on the grid from 2026 for what will be another exciting year for Formula 1.”
The team operators previously opened a Silverstone base in April 2024 as part of their approach to get started on their attempts to enter the sport, with the 48,000 square foot facility adjacent to the race-track intended to house manufacturing facilities, ADM, electronics, R&D and additional office and meeting facilities. The site is one of three that will be used by the team, alongside further facilities in the American states of Indiana and North Carolina.
The team had initially bid to enter F1 under the Andretti banner, but the proposal was initially rejected by Formula One. A revised proposal renamed as Cadillac with the greater involvement of General Motors ultimately won the approval of F1 to get into the sport.
Cadillac F1 have confirmed a structure with Graeme Lowdon as Team Principal and former Renault duo Pat Symonds and Nick Chester in high-ranking roles as part of a team that already has over 200 staff. The team will initially race with Ferrari customer engines, with plans to bring in a bespoke General Motors power unit after a few years.
No drivers have yet been confirmed, with announcements on that front expected later in the year.
In his own statement, Lowdon said, “In terms of being ready to race, everything is on schedule.“We don’t just want to turn up and race, we want to be as competitive as we possibly can be.
“From that point of view, for sure we would have loved to have had more time and more people because the more of that you have, the more performance you can build in. But we recognised that the process itself requires a huge amount of energy and effort.
“There’s an awful lot of work that has gone on in the background. There’s still a lot of work to do. We’re in a significantly better position now that we’re now a fully-fledged F1 team. We will have access to all the data and information that all the other teams have.
“Now we can really push to come up with the most competitive car that we can. The team is already very sizeable, we’re very comfortable about the position we’re in, in terms of being ready to go racing in 2026.”
The acclaimed IF: Milton Keynes International Festival is set to return for 2025.
Taking place on Friday 18 to Sunday 27 July, the festival will bring a wide variety of large-scale outdoor events, theatrical performances and installations, circus shows, comedy, cabaret, live music and free family activities to locations across the city.
The festival takes place every two years, having been held in odd-numbered years since lockdown, and is promoted the Stables art centre from the outskirts of the city.
The return of the festival has been marked with the announcement of the first events that will be part of the 2025 events programme.
Part of the announcement saw the organisers confirm two headline events on the opening weekend, in the form of large-scale works from Catalonia’s Deabru Beltzak and Germany’s Michael Pendry.
Deabru Beltzak’s pyrotechnic and drumming promenade performance Symfeuny will makes its way through the city on 18 July 2025 where it culminates in a spectacular on-stage finale. Deabru Beltzak have previously performed in Milton Keynes, with the Catalan troupe performing as part of the Clash of Drums event that formed part of the 2015 Rugby World Cup celebrations.
Michael Pendry’s moving art-for-peace multi-media installation Les Colombes will features 3,000 white paper doves in Middleton Hall in centre:mk, the Festival’s headline sponsor. People will be invited both to make doves to contribute to the installation and to hang doves in the windows of shops, offices, community centres and homes to create a second, City-wide, installation. Les Colombes will also be shown in Rome and New York this year.
As well as these two installations, performers have been confirmed in the Spiegeltent in Campbell Park.
The schedule commences with The Demon Barbers, with the dance and folk music act performing as part of their 25th anniversary celebration tour on Saturday 19 July.
Comedian and Taskmaster series 8 champion Lou Sanders will perform on Sunday 20 July, before La Voix will host A Night with La Voix on Sunday 21 July with music and comedy.
Award winning Francophone folk band Le Vent du Nord will then perform on Tuesday 22 July, ska singer Pauline Black OBE will perform as The Selecter on Wednesday 23 July, Stornoway singers Peat and Diesel will headline the tent on Thursday 24 July and former X Factor star turned indie-pop-folk star Lucy Spraggan will play a headline show on Friday 25 July.
Two events will take place on Saturday 26 July, with the Rubbish Shakespeare Company performing Rubbish Romeo & Juliet, in a show described as “Three idiots perform Shakespeare’s famous tragedy, using only a box of tatty wigs, a worn floral dress, and a burst airbed they found by the bins.” Also performing on the same day will be rock and soul artist Roachford, who will perform a musical set in the evening.
The final day of the festival on Sunday 27 July will see the tent play host to Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure for Kids, where Shlomo will make music with just a mouth and a mic, showing off stylings previously experienced in performances with famed stars such as Bjork, Ed Sheeran and Rudimental. The closing performers will be the Celidh Liberation Front, who will perform a mix of traditional folk and modern dance music.
Further acts, events, performances and art installations will be announced in due course. Tickets to all ticketed events are available on the Milton Keynes International Festival website.
Northampton Town played out a 1-1 draw with Stockport County after a late equaliser from their play-off chasing guests.
Terry Taylor’s goal had put the Cobblers in front in the first half, but a goal by substitute Benony Andresson rescued a point for the visitors in the final 12 minutes.
A point was a second draw in a row for Northampton, who had been held to a stalemate by Exeter late on in their last outing.
Nevertheless, a point was enough for Northampton to build up a five point gap to the relegation zone, with Kevin Nolan’s side sat 18th in the table.
In-form Stockport represented a tricky test for the Cobblers, with the visitors sitting in the top 4 at kick-off in their pursuit of back-to-back promotions.
The hosts would come close with a chance when Tarique Fosu headed over at a corner when well placed.
Just over half an hour into the clash, Northampton would find a way to take the lead. A free-kick was awarded for a foul on Ben Perry, much to Stockport’s irritation, and Taylor’s deflected free-kick caught out Corey Addai to put the home side’s in front.
Perry would later fire over when well placed, before Stockport’s Sam Cosgrove would see an equaliser in first half stoppage time disallowed for a foul on Sam Hoskins.
Stockport made a quadruple change to try and reboot their cause just before the hour mark, but they were struggling to make headway and nearly fell 2-0 down when Dara Costelloe fired just wide.
A 79th minute goal would then bring the visitors back on level term. Ryan Rydel picked out Andresson, who was able to head beyond Lee Burge and bring Stockport back on level terms.
Stockport had further chances to take the lead for the first time, with Burge making fine stops to thwart Oliver Norwood and Lewis Bate in the final stages, but Northampton were able to hold out and take a share of the points.
The Cobblers will be seeking to build on back-to-back draws in a tricky contest at home to League One leaders Birmingham City at the weekend.
Milton Keynes City Council is calling on local businesses and groups to celebrate the 60th birthday of Emberton Country Park.
Thousands of local people are expected at Emberton Country Park over the weekend of 12 and 13 July 2025 to celebrate the park’s 60th birthday, with the park team planning a big weekend of activities for children and adults alike.
An overall theme has been announced of ‘Back to the 60s’, with Emberton Country Park was officially opened in 1965 as the nation’s first country park.
The park is located between Newport Pagnell and Olney adjacent to the village of Emberton.
Live music, performances, fun activities and tasty refreshments will accompany nature-inspired walks, talks and displays, plus bug hunting and family crafts such as making bat and bird boxes, with all taking place across a 200-acre park that attracts visitors year-round for fishing, sailing, running and cycling, bird watching, picnicking and play.
Milton Keynes City Council is inviting expressions of interest from entertainers who would like to be part of the event as well as from businesses and potential stallholders who would like to promote or sell their goods and services. Commercial activities are welcome, and stall and sites will be offered at competitive rates starting from just £20.
The city council is especially interested in approaches around:
- Stalls, displays or entertainment with a 1960s theme e.g., clothes stalls, display cars, music
- Food and drink vendors
- Arts and crafts demonstrations, activities or stalls
- Fun fair type activities
Activities must be inclusive, in keeping with the country park setting, suitable for running outdoors (as marquee/covered space is limited) and organisers must have relevant qualifications (such as being DBS checked for those working with children).
Interested parties should contact the team with suggestions or questions to [email protected] by 31 March 2025.
MK Dons continued their miserable run as they lost 2-0 to Accrington Stanley.
First half goals by Tyler Walton and Joe O’Brien-Whitmarsh won the day for the home side, who triumphed in a match of few chances at the Wham Stadium.
The result meant defeat for the Dons in their first game with Ben Gladwin in interim charge following the departure of Scott Lindsey the previous Sunday.
A troubled start to 2025 for MK Dons has seen them win just two games since the turn of the year, with the latest result meaning MK Dons are now on a run of seven games without a win. They are now in 18th position in the table and sit ten points clear of the relegation zone, ahead of a meeting with second-bottom Morecambe on Saturday.
After defeat to Colchester in their previous game lead to Lindsey’s exit from the club, Gladwin was asked to pick up the pieces, starting with the trip to the North West.
Few chances were created by either side in the opening 23 minutes of football, but one would be created and scored. Seb Quirk’s cross found Walton, who managed to guide a header into the back of the net.
MK Dons did have a burst of possession after the goal but struggled to create clear opportunities and they instead conceded for a second time in the final six minutes of the half. O’Brien-Whitmarsh picked up the ball from Charlie Caton’s header, twisted away from his marker and duly beat Connal Trueman.
That more or less ended up being enough, with half-chances for Scott Hogan and Luke Offord being the best the visitors could muster as they slipped up to defeat in the North West.
Defeat came with no shots on target for the Dons, which was the second game in a row without one, as they continue their troubled run.
