Cadillac’s entry is the first time US car giant General Motors, their parent company, has competed in F1.

Towriss said Cadillac were trying to make a statement as they took their first steps in F1.

“You can say we’re competing against the other teams, but really Formula 1 is competing against other sports,” he said.

“You’re competing against the Super Bowl. You’re competing against what’s going on in stick and ball sports, Premier League soccer, all the things that are happening at the Olympics. There’s the Fifa World Cup this year. So there’s a lot going on.

“And so I think as teams we need to continue to find innovative ways to draw that interest, do storytelling and reach out to fans.”

Both Towriss and Lowdon have emphasised that Cadillac face an uphill struggle in F1 this year.

Towriss said: “We’re a brand new team. So we’re going to have have triumphant days and we’re going to have some carnage along the way as well. There’s just a lot to learn in this first year.”

He said the team have not set themselves a specific performance target for the season.

“For me, points would be kind of an arbitrary target,” said Towriss. “I think I want to look at beating teams, beating cars on track, and how many cars can we pass in year one in moving up the grid.

“And so I think that’s really how we’re thinking about it. And then, secondly, it’s going to be the rate of development on this car as well. We obviously have a long-term outlook for the team.”