Craig Lowndes says the presence of Roland Dane as Team Manager for the Supercheap Auto wildcard is providing a strong influence.

Dane will return to the Supercars paddock in an official manner at the Repco Bathurst 1000 this October.

He will lead the Triple Eight Race Engineering wildcard driven by Lowndes and Declan Fraser.

It comes after Dane exited the Banyo squad as a shareholder and team principal at the end of 2021.

The wildcard programme is not Dane’s first event back with a headset on, having also managed the SunEnergy1 Racing crew to victory at the Bathurst 12 Hour.

Lowndes and Fraser completed their second test day at Queensland Raceway today, with Dane keeping a watchful eye.

“It was nice to have Roland around again today,” said Lowndes.

“Nothing’s really changed much – he’s got his little notepad out running around and taking notes.

“He brings a level of experience that we need behind the scenes making sure we get everything right, and making sure we get to Bathurst with the best opportunity that we can.”

Jessica Dane, daughter of Roland, also plays a key part in the wildcard programme, managing the day-to-day operations as deputy Team Manager.

Meanwhile, Romy Mayer is the #888’s race engineer, with this year’s Great Race marking her first event as a race engineer.

Both women worked on the Supercheap Auto-backed Bathurst 1000 wildcard last year.

“Romy has been great on the radio, very calm and precise – I think we have a fantastic direction moving forward,” added Lowndes.

“It’s been another great test day for us; with the ergonomics and seat insert side of things now complete, we’ve made a big step forward.

“We had more of an opportunity to get into the setup and mechanical changes of the car which was a bonus today too.”

The Supercheap Auto wildcard’s livery for the Mount Panorama enduro will be made up of 5000 selfies submitted by race fans.

This year’s Bathurst 1000 takes place from October 6-9.