More than a week before the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, the Formula 1 world was abruptly awakened from its summer break.
At 3pm UK time, Cadillac decided the time was right to make a shock announcement: Graeme Lowdon had been replaced as team principal with immediate effect by Marcin Budkowski.
Two elements of that news are not particularly strange in themselves. For many in the paddock, it had already been clear for some time that while the well-liked Lowdon had been crucial during the team's initial build-up phase, he would not remain team principal in the longer term.
Nor is it particularly surprising that Cadillac has turned to someone like Budkowski. The French-educated Pole has gained experience across several different areas of F1: technical roles at the likes of Prost, Ferrari and McLaren, the regulatory side through his stint at the FIA, and subsequently the leadership side via his time at Alpine.
Cadillac admits it came earlier than planned
The main question is the timing: why now, and why so soon?
Cadillac stressed both in its press release and during the subsequent media session that it was a “planned transition”, but even then the timing is highly unusual. It comes in the middle of the summer break and only halfway through Cadillac's very first F1 season – extremely early, in other words.
"Anytime we're making a transition in Formula 1, as you guys know, it's very difficult," Towriss said, effectively concluding that there is no perfect moment for such an intervention.
That said, the 54-year-old American does admit that the intention was not to make the change this early. Yes, replacing Lowdon was part of the plan all along, but not necessarily at this point.
"Graeme and I always talked about that there would be a transition at some point," he continued. "This decision was mine. And I think there's a very narrow window of opportunity.
"When you look at what we're building, there is an opportunity to build something new and innovative. What I didn't want to do was to build something that's already been done, something that's old and then try to improve it. So I think that the time for that change came sooner than was expected."
That naturally raises the question of when Cadillac had initially planned to replace Lowdon.
However, when Motorsport.com asked whether the original idea had been to make the change at the end of the team's first season, Towriss declined to go into detail: "I wouldn't put a timetable on it. I think it was going to be, you know, a wait-and-see kind of thing."
In practice, some parts of the process came together at the last minute. Budkowski revealed during the media session that he had not even had the time for a proper factory tour yet, while Towriss explained that Lowdon was only informed on the morning before the public announcement.
"So Graeme and I spoke this morning, so I think it is a very recent conversation from that perspective," Towriss said, adding that it had not been a mutual decision.
The current results did not play a role, according to Cadillac. Instead, one consideration was that a new team principal can still actively influence the 2027 project at this stage, whereas that would have been almost impossible with a later leadership change.
AI, communication and GM: why change is needed
Even more interesting than the timing is why Cadillac believes it needs a different type of leadership for the team's next phase, and why it has chosen Budkowski.
Although the competitive picture on track is fairly encouraging for a newcomer– perhaps even better than expected – there are areas behind the scenes that need improving. These include communication at the factory: preventing silos within the team and ensuring that the different departments work together as effectively as possible.
Towriss acknowledges those issues and identifies them as key focal points of the team's new leadership direction.
"A lot of those issues, which to different degrees do exist, I think are teething issues," Cadillac's F1 CEO reckoned.
"I think in new organizations, communication is always going to be a focal point to improve, making sure things are organized correctly, aligned correctly, and maintaining morale through that building phase. So those issues are to be expected, and they do exist in different degrees."
Aside from the human element, Towriss believes there is still plenty of untapped potential within General Motors. That applies, for example, to artificial intelligence and the tools GM has in that area. Towriss also believes Budkowski can make greater use of those resources than Cadillac has managed so far.
Asked by Motorsport.com what he was looking at for the next stage, Towriss clarified: "As we look to the future, I think we’re looking at a model with a very strong technical team principal. And I think if you look at Marcin's background, what he's accomplished in Formula 1, he certainly fits the bill."
"Also, I think the time that Marcin has had away from Formula 1 provides him with a perspective to look at both how F1 has evolved and developed, look at the resources across General Motors and TWG, and really look at what a future vision of a Formula 1 team can look like."
And it is precisely on that final point that AI comes into play: "The role of AI and those kinds of things, I think we've only scratched the surface of the tool set that GM has to offer in F1 through Cadillac. And so I think there's more work to be done there."
AI was also one of the points Budkowski emphasised during his first media appearance as Cadillac’s team boss. In his view, the F1 team of the future will look very different from today's squads.
"There's a lot of changes in F1 and then there's a huge societal change going on as well, with AI taking over a lot of things," he said.
"And I think it's coming to F1, but we're at the very, very beginning of that. But I do think the teams of the future will look very different from what they look now."
Budkowski's task is to work on both aspects in parallel: improving performance with the 2026 car and solving the reliability problems – something he described as “urgent” – while at the same time future-proofing the American outfit and extracting more from the technology within GM.
This ties in with Cadillac’s ambition to shift the team's centre of gravity slightly more towards the United States. Not by taking anything away from the Silverstone facility, but by tapping into other technologies and expertise on American soil.
"Obviously, with the concentration of F1 talent in the UK, the bulk of our recruitment has been in the UK and is moving into a more US-centric phase going forward. That is not by moving people, but by continuing to grow the organization in other locations," Towriss explained.
"We’re also looking at innovation capabilities from other industries. Marcin mentioned aerospace and there are some other industries as well. And again, further integration of the tool set available at GM. We'll be looking at all of those things, integrating those across all the locations."
Alongside the teething issues around communication, this will be one of Budkowski's most important tasks. Cadillac believes that, despite the team still being in its infancy, potential has been left on the table, and it is precisely that potential within GM that Budkowski needs to tap into for the longer term.
At the same time, the current move shows that nobody in F1 is safe in their job and that there is always a need to deliver – even when you are building an F1 team from scratch and might think you have time on your side.
Budkowski will face the same pressure in his new role: yes, his main task is to shape the American team for the longer term, but at the same time every Sunday is an exam in F1.
"I don't feel there will be a lot of pressure on me, but I'm sure there will be expectations. And that's logical and normal in this kind of role. But those expectations are not unreasonable and are not completely removed from the reality of Formula 1," Budkowski said.
"I think everybody understands the size of the challenge ahead, but there is the commitment to tackle it. And I'm joining this with the same mindset."
Cadillac's reasoning is not entirely illogical and fits a broader trend of F1 teams increasingly turning to technical leaders – perhaps partly following successful examples – but for a newcomer, the timing remains remarkable.
Above all, it shows just how unforgiving the F1 world can be, even during the summer break and even for the newest team on the grid.
