Bahrain pre-season testing was a respectable showing from Cadillac, with the American giant entering F1 not as the slowest team thanks to Aston Martin's dreadful start to 2026.

Between Bottas and Perez, Cadillac racked up 266 laps in Bahrain, and both drivers finished ahead of Aston Martin in terms of their quickest lap times across the final test.

Despite the positive start to life in F1, Coulthard believes Bottas already has a head start on teammate Perez due to the fact he remained active as a Mercedes reserve driver in 2025, with the former McLaren man "concerned" with whether or not Perez can "switch it back on."

Speaking on the Up to Speed podcast, Coulthard said: "I think Bottas is better prepared because he's coming with that Mercedes information. He's been working with Mercedes all last year, simulator work and the likes.

"They're old enough to be professional out of the car. They know they've got to work for the greater good of the team. But make no bones about it, their individual teams, managers, physios, and everybody that works around them... Your team-mate's success is your failure. You've got to beat your team-mate.

"And I've got to think if we were laying it out now, I think Bottas has a better chance of beating Perez just by the fact he's more recent."

Despite favouring Bottas for the start of 2026, Coulthard nonetheless praised Cadillac's decision to recruit both veteran drivers, calling them both a "safe pair of hands" for what will surely be a tough debut season.

Meanwhile, over at Aston Martin, Cadillac's main rival so far in 2026, reserve driver Stoffel Vandoorne has admitted the team "are not at the level we want to be," and that the late arrival of legendary designer Adrian Newey "certainly hasn't helped" at Silverstone.