{"id":852900,"date":"2026-08-12T19:18:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T19:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/852900\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T19:18:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T19:18:11","slug":"why-was-graeme-lowdon-removed-as-cadillac-f1-team-principal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/852900\/","title":{"rendered":"Why was Graeme Lowdon removed as Cadillac F1 team principal?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Graeme Lowdon has been removed from his role as Cadillac<\/a> team boss, Dan Towriss has confirmed, with some clues offered as to why the British engineer has been replaced.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Cadillac made a shock announcement to confirm that Marcin Budkowski will immediately replace Graeme Lowdon as team principal of the American squad, with the experienced British executive being quickly sidelined after leading the team onto the grid this season.<\/p>\n

Dan Towriss explains Graeme Lowdon\u2019s Cadillac departure<\/p>\n

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Following on from the shock announcement, Cadillac F1 CEO Dan Towriss held a media session, alongside his new signing Budkowski, in which the pair fielded questions about the nature of the transition, which has seen Lowdon replaced.<\/p>\n

While Cadillac\u2019s press release on Thursday revealed that Lowdon had been replaced, with a short message of thanks from Towriss, there was little to indicate the nature of the split, which had come as a surprise given the apparent success of the American squad in reaching the grid with a remarkably solid baseline of performance.<\/p>\n

Senior sources suggested the split had been of a planned nature, one of amicability, but the fact that Lowdon had held a mid-season review in Budapest, which included PlanetF1.com, in which he outlined the importance of stability on a longer timeline to build beyond the initial foundations of a team, seemed at odds with this messaging.<\/p>\n

Towriss explained on the media call that, while the split may have been planned on his side, Lowdon was not part of this initial decision-making process to find a successor for his own role.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was my decision. It wasn\u2019t a mutual decision,\u201d Towriss summed up.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally, the process started a few months ago, to explore really thinking about what the next phase for Cadillac Formula 1 looks like.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the right timing, how would that look? And the capabilities of the various folks out there.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, we were delighted in the conversation with Marcin, and how that relationship evolved.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo Graeme and I spoke this morning. It is a very recent conversation from that perspective, but there\u2019s no easy way to make this transition within Formula 1.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan you imagine the press if Marcin is strolling through for a tour of the factory or we\u2019re having these conversations?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt becomes destabilising at that point, and so it\u2019s important to respect the purview of the leadership that\u2019s in place at that time. So it does compress the decision-making; the timeline, how these things come together, makes it feel more abrupt than it would be otherwise.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s the nature of Formula 1, and it\u2019s the way it had to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

With Lowdon\u2019s replacement coming as something of a bolt from the blue, given how Cadillac\u2019s maiden season has been one of relative solidity for a brand-new team, Towriss indicated that the point at which the team making its next step was necessary came more quickly than had been anticipated.<\/p>\n

\u201cGraeme and I always talked about that there would be a transition at some point,\u201d he said of the timing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis decision was mine, and I think there\u2019s a very narrow window of opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you look at what we\u2019re building, an opportunity to build something new and innovative, what I didn\u2019t want to do was build something that\u2019s already been done, something that\u2019s old, and then try to improve it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe time for that change came sooner than was expected. But really, I wouldn\u2019t say that it\u2019s the performance or the teething issues over the last few weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really about just having a clear vision on what we\u2019re building in the future, the rate of progress, and making sure that that matches the ambitions of ownership.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked by PlanetF1.com whether Lowdon had been aware coming into 2026 that this possibility of hitting a point of transition could be reached in his first season, and whether his role could have been interpreted as interim in nature, Towriss offered a riposte.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s fair to say that he was here in an interim capacity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt really is a function of performance and how things evolved, and those are certainly going to be discussions that are going to be kept between Graeme and myself as to where those aligned and where they didn\u2019t align.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I can say is what was accomplished; I have immense respect for Graeme, and we have been through a lot over\u2026 this wasn\u2019t an interim period for me and for Graeme.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s almost a four-year period of planning and building and doing all the pieces. It was the right time based on the circumstances that exist both within the sport and within the team, and so this is the right time and the right place to make that step going forward.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime we\u2019re making a transition in Formula 1, as you guys know, it\u2019s very difficult to keep it quiet. There weren\u2019t a myriad of leaks around that. But here we are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alongside the departure of Lowdon, the team\u2019s head of communications, Lucy Genon, has also departed her role, with former Aston Martin head of communications Adrian Atkinson stepping in on an interim basis \u2013 his primary role being head of communications for General Motors\u2019 motorsport division.<\/p>\n

Why has Graeme Lowdon been removed as Cadillac F1 team principal?<\/p>\n

While Cadillac is the only team on the F1 2026 grid without a point to its name, and, following Aston Martin\u2019s apparent step forward in performance in Hungary, is stuck at the back of the grid, it has been a very respectable start to life to F1 for a team with just 11 races to its name.<\/p>\n

The pace of the MAC-26 hasn\u2019t been embarrassing, while Lowdon recently explained that his approach has been to maintain an \u2018everyday is a schoolday\u2019 mindset during this inaugural season.<\/p>\n

While a specific shortcoming on Lowdon\u2019s part wasn\u2019t offered by Towriss, there were hints aplenty through the media session, which appeared to point towards the ongoing technical issues that have plagued Cadillac through the first half of the season as being of greater concern to the team\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

Reliability issues, such as those regularly affecting the brakes and even causing fires, weren\u2019t uncommon, such as what happened to Valtteri Bottas a fortnight ago in Hungary, while suspension issues also caused retirements, particularly for Sergio Perez.<\/p>\n

Both drivers had voiced frustrations over the ongoing issues, which, from an external standpoint, were the only obvious flies in the ointment for what was otherwise apparently a solid baseline of effort.<\/p>\n

Certainly, Budkowski\u2019s comments on his areas of priority suggested this area is the shortcoming that he, as a technically-minded engineer and former technical director, can possibly resolve faster than a more business-oriented leader such as Lowdon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere have been reliability issues that have marred the team in the first part of the season,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn some part, it\u2019s understandable. It\u2019s a new team. It\u2019s a new group of people. They are learning together, and they are failing together. Failure is a part of learning in Formula 1. It\u2019s not pleasant, but these things have clearly prevented the team from understanding more, because mileage, at the end of the day during a race, it\u2019s all data that you accumulate, it\u2019s all understanding of the car, and I think that needs to be fixed very, very urgently.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure there is determination in the team to do that, but there will be a strong focus on sorting the issues we are having at the moment, because otherwise there\u2019s no point developing if you can\u2019t race the parts that you bring in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Added to that was the implication that the ongoing reliability issues were creating an air of disharmony within the ranks of the team, which Budkowski is eager to head off.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first priority is going to be to listen, honestly, listen and observe in the factory because I need to meet the people,\u201d he said, ahead of his first planned visit to Cadillac\u2019s Silverstone base on Monday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI need to understand how they work, how they work together, how the various individuals and departments first work together. But also, throughout my F1 experience, I know that when a team is suffering reliability issues, as Cadillac had during the first half of the season, it\u2019s a huge risk of creating a disconnect between the trackside operations and the factory, and that needs to be very, very strong in any Formula 1 team.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat link needs to be very, very strong, so that\u2019s why I will share my first week between the factory and the track in Zandvoort because I want to see both sides of the team and how they work together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s going to be the short-term priority: listen, observe, and make sure the two entities, if you want\u2026 I mean, it\u2019s one team, one entity, but, effectively, in today\u2019s world with 24 races, the people from the factory and the people from the track don\u2019t see each other very often, and that\u2019s often an issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we had 16 races in F1, and we had much smaller teams, then people would spend a lot of time together at the factory. That\u2019s not the case anymore, and I think that that connection is very, very important, especially in the short term, in the races we still have to compete in this year, and there are quite a few.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to look in depth at the organisation, at the processes, at our tools, what we have, what we\u2019re still building, what we need, and what General Motors has to offer because there\u2019s a huge depth of technical expertise and tools there that doesn\u2019t feel like it\u2019s been completely used yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnderstandably, we\u2019re talking about a team that had a few months to be built from the ground up and put a race car together and go racing with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The attraction of signing Budkowski is understandable: his most recent roles saw him act as executive director of Renault, where he had also served as technical drector, easing its transition into its current Alpine iteration.<\/p>\n

Prior to that, he headed up F1\u2019s technical department, as well as a stint with the FIA as technical and sporting coordinator. Before that, he worked in lead aerodynamicist roles at McLaren, as well as at Ferrari between 2002 and \u201907.<\/p>\n

Asked about where the timeline of identifying the succession plan for a post-Lowdon team had begun, Towriss offered more hints that he feels the Polish engineer may be a better fit for the role.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t put a timetable on it. I think it was going to be a wait-and-see kind of thing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think, as we look to the future, I think a model with a very strong technical team principal\u2026 look at Marcin\u2019s background, what he\u2019s accomplished in Formula 1, he certainly fits the bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, also, combined with very strong leadership, I think as we\u2019re going through the track over a gruelling 24 races, or however many races we\u2019re getting in this season, that leadership is important in setting the direction for a winning mindset.<\/p>\n

\u201cAcross the organisation, from the garage back to the factory, and building those foundations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the time that Marcin had away from Formula 1 provides him a perspective to look at how Formula 1 has evolved and developed. Look at the resources across General Motors, TWG, and the like, and really look at what a future vision of a Formula 1 team can look like. The role of AI and those kinds of things.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ve only scratched the surface of the toolset that GM has to offer in Formula 1, through Cadillac, and so I think there\u2019s more work to be done there.<\/p>\n

\u201cBringing all of that, harnessing all of those changes together, I think, are really going to set us on a different trajectory to build that long-term organisation.<\/p>\n

As for Budkowski himself, he explained that his contact with Towriss began some time ago, rather than being a shock phone call coinciding with the decision to oust Lowdon.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not that Dan called me out of the blue and said, \u2018I want you to be team principal\u2019,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had a number of exchanges with Dan, and I think it was part of a reflection process that he was having.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to put words in his mouth, but it took a few discussions, obviously, to get to this stage, and I also had a few discussions with people at General Motors up to the very top, up to Mark Reuss, the chairman of General Motors, in the process.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom my side, I must say that I\u2019ve had discussions. I\u2019ve had discussions in the past years with more than half of the teams on the grid; some of them more advanced and some less advanced, but for me it was important.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I come back to this leadership role, to be in a project that I believe in, there are a few aspects to that. But this project is very ambitious. It\u2019s backed by the TWG Group, which is extremely involved in motorsport, but General Motors is one of the biggest car companies in the world with a lot of ambition, with funding, which wasn\u2019t always the case in my previous ventures.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the need to improve reliability and, hand-in-hand with that, the mileage accumulation for a new team, Towriss outlined the immediate priorities for Cadillac as the mindset starts to shift to 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201c[On] performance, really just continuing to enhance the team that we have, and every race, every weekend, things get tighter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe garage continues to operate at a higher level. The connectivity to the factory gets better, and so, as we continue to improve that, just that improvement alone will lead to performance gains, and so that\u2019s a real focus over the remainder of \u201926.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do have additional upgrades that we\u2019re looking at to bring to the track as well that won\u2019t distract from the \u201927 priorities, and then a lot of the process and organisation things at the factory \u2013 that\u2019ll continue to be a focus over the remaining half of \u201926, and then, with leadership changes, as well as the evolution of this team, it\u2019s going to be about culture.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s communication. That\u2019s leadership. It\u2019s accountability. All the things we\u2019ve talked about, I think there\u2019s an opportunity to bring all those things together and to raise the bar through the remaining half of \u201926, through the back half of the season, which we hope will be a real springboard for us going into \u201927.\u201d<\/p>\n

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n

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Read Next:\u00a0Cadillac appoints new team principal as Graeme Lowdon leaves role<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Graeme Lowdon has been removed from his role as Cadillac team boss, Dan Towriss has confirmed, with some…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":852901,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[64,63,3550,817,813,816,17670,818,423324,44,85],"class_list":["post-852900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cadillac","tag-f1","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-graeme-lowdon","tag-home-page","tag-marcin-budkowski","tag-news","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852900","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=852900"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852900\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/852901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=852900"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=852900"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=852900"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}