Formula 1 News: Cadillac F1 Names TikTok’s Ahmed Iqbal

As Cadillac gears up for its Formula 1 entry in 2026, the focus isn’t solely on crafting a car capable of dueling the grid’s elite. It’s equally about forging a brand that’s as audacious and forward-thinking beyond the barriers as it is within the team’s workshops.

Spearheading this effort is Ahmed Iqbal, Cadillac F1’s inaugural Chief Marketing Officer. Drawing from his stints at TikTok and Twitter, Iqbal is tasked with transforming the team into “America’s home team.” His playbook shuns conventional ads and high-gloss deals in favor of nurturing growth via online creators, communal vibes, and cultural currents.

“The goal is to build America’s home team and really solidify our place, America’s place, in the pinnacle of racing in Formula 1,” Iqbal told Boardroom.tv in an exclusive interview. “We’re setting out to deliver a brand that is as dynamic and innovative on the track as it is off it.”

From Showroom Hustle to Global Storytelling

Iqbal’s path to the F1 paddock kicked off worlds away from high-octane circuits.

His automotive baptism happened in college, courtesy of a savvy negotiation by his father during a Honda Accord purchase: the deal closed only if the dealership handed Iqbal a summer gig. Those months on the sales floor schooled him in the industry’s pulse—from showroom dynamics to the emotional triggers that seal a sale.

That foundation propelled him into a seven-year run at Audi of America, ascending to Chief of Staff. There, he rubbed shoulders with visionaries shaping electric vehicles and mobility’s horizon. Yet, it was a deeper revelation that stuck.

“My favorite passion was actually just telling stories and making people feel something,” he told Boardroom.tv. “Making people feel seen, making people feel excited about something, and bringing some positivity and lightness to their day.”

At Audi, Iqbal pinpointed his core drive: not mere transactions, but evoking emotion and bonds via branding. This epiphany nudged him toward broader horizons. During the Young Lions program at Cannes, he immersed in expansive marketing vistas and interdisciplinary sparks absent in auto silos. A casual lunch with a Twitter exec probing car brands’ social savvy flipped the script into a career pivot.

“I kind of rebuilt her whole pitch,” Iqbal told Boardroom.tv with a laugh. “I told her, here’s how you should be approaching the CMO of an automotive company. These are the stories and the data points that would actually land.”

That exchange evolved into a swift beachfront chat with Twitter’s global brands lead, landing Iqbal the role of steering the platform’s worldwide automotive playbook within weeks. Over three and a half years, he molded how automakers projected online personas. Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover, however, signaled his cue for fresh pastures.

Enter TikTok, seeking Iqbal’s global blueprint to bootstrap its U.S. automotive footprint—from inventive drives to bespoke ad tools for carmakers. He assembled a squad and ballooned the sector over two and a half years, underscoring how Gen-Z car enthusiasts—and future race devotees—emerge from For You Page trends and creator alchemy.

When Cadillac came knocking, Iqbal’s blended expertise was tailor-made.

“I’ve learned automotive and its full ecosystem,” he told Boardroom.tv. “I’ve learned social media from the lens of cultural relevance, and that kind of sets me up for this world of automotive and new media.”

Crafting the Next-Gen F1 Fanbase, One Scroll at a Time

Iqbal joins Cadillac F1 amid a boom era for the series and its digital natives. F1’s glow has amplified, migrating from TV screens and recap clips to TikTok montages, influencer partnerships, and instantaneous online buzz. For Iqbal, this evolution isn’t mere tactics—it’s the bedrock of Cadillac’s grid persona.

“The goal is to build America’s home team,” he told Boardroom.tv.

Achieving that demands intercepting fans in their native habitats: apps, chats, and the creator marketplace. Iqbal views influencers not as fleeting endorsers, but as bona fide media pipelines—a fresh broadcast paradigm for today’s superfans. Cadillac F1, under his watch, will transcend race glamour, prioritizing the interstitial tales—the trials, tech wizardry, and human elements of construction—that Iqbal dubs the sport’s “negative space.”

Handing creators and enthusiasts keys to this realm, he envisions converting insider glimpses into worldwide dialogues. His ethos boils down to: content must inform and amuse, rendering F1 elite yet approachable.

“For new fans, you have to go to where they are versus trying to pull them into where you are,” Iqbal told Boardroom.tv.

This entails demystifying F1’s arcane engineering through relatable, eye-catching, viral formats, while granting hardcore followers unprecedented peeks. It’s a motif echoing his trajectory: alchemizing technical rigor into narrative magic. Thus, Cadillac’s trailblazing U.S.-manufacturer squad—with outposts in Indiana, North Carolina, and Silverstone, plus drivers Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez—transcends track rivalry. Iqbal’s vision: a digitally native marque that echoes from Motor City to the Middle East.

“Our main focus should be building a fan ecosystem that is attainable and accessible for fans across the world,” he told Boardroom.tv.

This network will thrive as robustly on feeds as in garages, fueled by creator chronicles, collective narratives, and a welcoming call for fans to co-build from inception. For Iqbal, launch year transcends stats—it’s about instilling belonging in the assembly.

Year-One Yardsticks: Community Over Checkered Flags

Come 2026 green light, Iqbal’s gaze will split between circuits and connections.

“Success for me in the first season would be, one, having a program that everyone is proud of about the work that we had as a people,” he told Boardroom.tv. “Second, that we solidify ourselves as America’s home team … that everyone at the end of that season is like, I’m on that journey with that team that’s building something from scratch.”

Shared stewardship—linking squad, allies, and supporters—threads through Iqbal’s blueprint. Cadillac F1 seeks a fandom that’s interactive, screen-centric, and woven into its milieu.

Progress to 2026 tallies via chassis advances and ingenuity leaps, alongside savvy spotlights—via social streams, shop floors, and creator conduits.

For Iqbal, victory pulses there: elevating the genesis as the saga. Should it click, America’s fledgling F1 contender won’t merely chase trophies; it’ll vie for hearts in the hyperlinked era.

This article is based on an exclusive interview with Boardroom.tv.