APEX RACEWIRE Newsroom
Budkowski Takes Helm at Cadillac F1 Amidst Leadership Shake-Up
Former Alpine executive Marcin Budkowski has been appointed Team Principal for Cadillac's Formula 1 entry, replacing Graeme Lowdon in a move described by the team as a 'planned leadership transition' but confirmed by its CEO as a unilateral decision.
By Nadia van Leeuwen - 2026-08-13 05:15:52.000 - 4 min read
Cadillac has announced a significant leadership change within its Formula 1 operations, appointing former Alpine executive director Marcin Budkowski as its new Team Principal. This high-profile move sees the departure of Graeme Lowdon, who had been at the helm since the team's inception and oversaw its entry into the world championship this year. The transition, effective immediately, concludes Lowdon's tenure amidst a challenging inaugural season for the American outfit.
While an initial statement from the team framed the change as a "planned leadership transition," further details provided by Cadillac CEO Dan Towriss indicated a more abrupt end to Lowdon's role. Towriss confirmed in a virtual press conference that the decision to remove Lowdon was his alone, not a mutual agreement. He further revealed that Lowdon was only informed of his dismissal a matter of hours before the public announcement, explaining that such a compressed timeline was necessary to prevent destabilisation within the team during the confidential process of finding a successor.
Despite the sudden nature of his exit, Towriss expressed gratitude for Lowdon's foundational work. He acknowledged Lowdon's critical role in "forming the Cadillac Formula 1 Team from the ground up," contributing significantly to its establishment during the extensive build-up phase and helping to lay a strong foundation for its debut on the grid.
The leadership reshuffle comes as Cadillac navigates a challenging inaugural season in Formula 1. As the only team yet to score a point after 11 rounds, the American outfit has struggled for both competitive pace and consistent reliability. Despite coming close to a points finish in Monaco, where Sergio Perez was demoted from 10th to 11th by a penalty, the team's campaign has been significantly hampered by a total of nine retirements between its drivers, Perez and Valtteri Bottas.
Concerns over reliability appear to have intensified throughout the season, with the team managing to get both cars to the chequered flag in only one of the last seven races. Instances of technical issues have seen both drivers forced to stop on track or return to the pits with brake and power unit-related problems, raising questions about the squad's operational consistency as the season progressed.
Budkowski steps into the role with immediate effect, with his first race at the helm scheduled for the Dutch Grand Prix, which marks the season's resumption after the summer break. He articulated a clear vision for the team, describing this period as "a phase of huge opportunity" with the objective of "maximising car development within the cost cap and turning every team function on to compete."
His focus, Budkowski explained, will be on fostering "an elite organisation with a winning mindset — driven, relentless in the face of setbacks, obsessed with detail and process, and able to execute with precision on race day." He emphasised the importance of "aligning our people, tools and information flow so the right decisions are made quickly, and the performance of the car improves every time we go racing."
Budkowski brings a wealth of experience from across the Formula 1 paddock, having held significant roles with several prominent teams. His career began as an aerodynamicist with the struggling Prost team in 2001, followed by a five-year stint at Ferrari when the team was at the peak of its powers, winning multiple championships. He then moved to McLaren in 2007, where he ascended to the position of head of aerodynamics.
Prior to his most recent team principal role, he led Formula 1's technical department within the FIA. He returned to team competition in 2018 as Executive Director for the Renault F1 team, which later rebranded as Alpine. He took full charge following Cyril Abiteboul's departure in 2021 before leaving the team himself 12 months later, prior to this new appointment with Cadillac.
Cadillac CEO Towriss underscored the team's overarching ambition, stating that their goal has never been "simply to participate in Formula 1, but to build a next-generation team capable of competing at the very front." Budkowski's appointment, with his extensive technical and leadership background, signals a clear intent to accelerate this challenging trajectory, starting with the immediate demands of Zandvoort.