Lowdon ‘really pleased’ with Cadillac progress and problem-solving

For the Cadillac F1 team, the first full public outing alongside the established grid was less about chasing lap times and more about demonstrating readiness – and team boss Graeme Lowdon left Bahrain feeling energised rather than overwhelmed.

In a week that saw established giants grappling with reliability gremlins and technical headaches, Cadillac emerged as one of the most composed operations on the grid.

While it may be the new kid on the block, the US outfit spent three days proving that they’re tackling F1 with the poise of a group of veterans.

A Calm in the Desert Storm

For a team that only had its grid slot confirmed a year ago, the sheer volume of running was a statement in itself. Cadillac consistently cleared the 100-lap mark daily, out-pacing the mileage of heavyweights like Mercedes and Aston Martin.

But for Lowdon, the real victory wasn't just on the timing screens – it was the atmosphere within the garage.

“I'm really, really pleased with the progress, and also the problem-solving as well,” Lowdon said, reflecting on a productive week in Sakhir.

“But also the way that we've gone about solving problems as a team has been really in a very calm manner. In the garage, you see that. It's very easy to assess it in the garage, but also in the engineering meetings and the like.”

This sense of orderly professionalism has been a hallmark of the Cadillac project since its first secret runs.

“And actually, it's one of the attributes about the team that I really noticed, first of all, at the shakedown in Silverstone," Lowdon noted.

"We walked in the garage that morning, and what I saw was a calm, collected Formula 1 team ready to go to work.

“And if you've got that as a platform, you can really, really build. Whereas if you walk in a garage and it’s mayhem and chaos and whatever, you might still go fast, but you'll hit a ceiling eventually.”

Building on a Solid Foundation

Beyond the operational success, the CA01 chassis showed a level of robustness that most new entrants typically struggle to find.

By avoiding the "obvious reliability issues" or "predominant handling issues" that often plague new teams, Cadillac has been able to focus purely on data collection and performance tuning.

“We've always said that as a team, we've got bold ambition. We're realistic and we're grounded, and we know how difficult this game is, but we didn't want to just be here," Lowdon explained.

"We really want to try and build something, and I feel that we've got that. I think the car reflects the team. The car's a good platform we can build on. I think the team is a really good, solid platform that we can build on as well.”

While Lowdon remains pragmatic about the competitive order, the absence of major issues has given the team a massive confidence boost heading into the final week of preparations.

“If we had a serious or obvious reliability issue, then that would be a massive concern," he added.

"Equally, if we had a really predominant handling issue or something like that, then that would be a concern. And we generally don't have any of that. I feel like we've got a platform that we can really build on here.”

• Read also: Bottas says performance runs are near for Cadillac

As the team prepares for next month’s season opener in Australia, the focus remains on steady evolution within the sport's strict financial limits.

“We're dealing with the same laws of physics as every other team,” Lowdon explained. “We’re in a cost-capped environment. We've had to expend a huge amount of effort and energy as a team just to start as a new team.

“And I think to absorb all of that and have a platform that I feel we can build on, I think that's a really, really positive start.”

In a championship obsessed with fractions of a second, Cadillac’s early success may not yet be measured on the stopwatch – but in structure, stability and self-belief, the foundations of something far bigger appear to be firmly in place.

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