Team 18 signs ex-F1, Le Mans-winning engineer
Team 18 has continued its pre-Gen3 personnel push with the acquisition of respected engineer Tony Dowe.
The team has signed on Dowe as its Purchasing Manager.
The role is centred on "the upkeep of the spare parts inventory” with an eye also on Gen3.
Team 18 will switch Commodores for Camaros from 2023.
Dowe is no stranger to Supercars; he was previously Kelly Racing’s Performance Director in 2011.
It came after a stint at Walkinshaw Racing.
Dowe was part of Jaguar’s successful sportscar programme in the 1980s and 1990s.
That period included wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours of Daytona.
He also spent time in Formula 1 with the likes of Brabham, Ensign, Wolf, Ligier and Arrows.
Team 18 will race Camaros (render) in 2023
Already this year, Team 18 has secured the likes of Dennis Huijser and Bruin Beasley.
Mark Winterbottom announced a contract extension earlier this month.
Huijser previously worked with Dowe at Walkinshaw.
“We are pleased to have Tony agree to join Team 18,” team owner Charlie Schwerkolt said.
“He possesses an outstanding wealth of successful racing experience and is a valuable addition to our racing operations.
“With new developments emerging daily for Gen3, it was critical for us to be on the front foot to prepare for the build of the new cars without compromising our focus on the final three rounds of this year’s championship, and appointments like this will contribute to that.
“To have someone of Tony’s experience in the team is invaluable and we have no doubt the entire team will be able to feed off his years of success in all forms of motorsport to drive the team forwards.”
Dowe added: "Gen3 is a huge undertaking because it is a complete car with very little carry-over from anything else previously.
“It’s an opportunity to put in place some structure for how we manage inventory and control what we order and look after the dollars and cents, because cash flow is always the thing that we must keep an eye on.
“There’s 97 working days to the first of February next year and that’s going to be a killer for all teams up and down pit lane if you don’t stay on top of things.”
The 2022 season will continue in Bathurst on October 6-9.
