The history of the Jaguar Racing F1 Team in Formula 1 lasted just five seasons. Jacques Nasser, head of Ford from 1999, driven by the intention of fielding a fully Ford-owned team, convinced the executives of the American car manufacturer in June 1999 to purchase Stewart GP, combining Jackie Stewart’s significant presence with the prestige of the Jaguar name, an English brand acquired by Ford in 1990, and the legendary historic British Racing Green livery. After two disappointing initial seasons, in 2002 the English team, based in Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, England, sought redemption by reshuffling its technical staff while remaining within its own walls.
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| JAGUAR R3, Eddie Irvine Hungaroring, Hungarian GP 2002 |
Thus, Günther Steiner entered the world of Formula 1, appointed by Ford executives as Chief Executive Officer of the Jaguar team. Steiner is an Italian manager, born in Merano, South Tyrol, active in the rally world since 1986. After serving as Sporting Director for several private teams, in 2000 he was hired by Ford as Technical Director for the Ford World Rally Team, where, with the Focus RS WRC driven by Colin McRae and Carlos Sainz, he achieved second place in the World Rally Championship in both 2000 and 2001. Steiner replaced Bobby Rahal, who had been dismissed in the summer of 2001 and succeeded by Niki Lauda. The three-time Austrian World Champion, however, remained at the head of the Premier Performance Division, tasked with carefully evaluating Ford’s entire motorsport operation and coordinating the activities of Jaguar Racing, Cosworth, and Pi Research. Another Ford executive, John Allison, was entrusted with the responsibility of handling the commercial and administrative aspects of the operation, focusing on budget and team performance, which were subject to closer scrutiny after Ford CEO Jacques Nasser stepped down at the end of 2001, replaced by William Clay Ford Jr. While Nasser had been an enthusiastic supporter of the Formula 1 program, the more pragmatic and frugal Ford Jr. questioned the massive spending on a team that neither bore the Ford name nor delivered results. Similarly, German manager Wolfgang Reitzle, who oversaw the Jaguar, Volvo, and Land Rover brands, was stripped of his role as part of a broader corporate reorganization, and after refusing a redefined position that excluded motorsport, chose to leave Ford altogether.
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| JAGUAR R3, Eddie Irvine Montecarlo, Monaco GP 2002 |
With these circumstances, the Jaguar team could hardly approach the upcoming 2002 season with peace of mind, let alone with the strength needed to achieve a leap in competitiveness and performance. From a simple restyling of the previous R2 came the new Jaguar R3, designed once again by the same technical staff already present in the team the previous season. Technical Director Steve Nichols, however, after conducting pre-season tests at the Catalunya-Barcelona and Ricardo Tormo circuits in Valencia and seeing the poor results, chose to resign, leaving Formula 1 for good. He was replaced by Mark Gillan, yet another Ford man but with no Formula 1 experience. The Chief Designer of the new R3 was still engineer John Russell, while Mark Handford continued in his role as Head of Aerodynamics.
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| JAGUAR R3, Pedro de la Rosa Montréal, Canadian GP 2002 |
The lines of the new R3 did not differ much from the previous Jaguar single-seater, except for a slightly more sloping nose and newly designed front wing support pylons, with a more arched shape. The rest of the car closely mirrored the rather classic, no-frills shapes of the 2001 R2. The mechanics remained unchanged, as did the transmission and gearbox, while the Cosworth V10 engine was updated to the CR-4 specification. Despite the upgrades, however, the Cosworth engine remained one of the least powerful on the grid, producing only 805 hp at 17,500 rpm. Both engine and transmission were the main suspects for the R3’s very poor reliability, which forced the car to retire from races due to mechanical failures on 19 occasions out of 34 starts. The R3 was presented to the public on January 4 in the presence of the two confirmed drivers who had already closed out the 2001 season for the team: Northern Irishman Eddie Irvine and Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa, along with test drivers André Lotterer of Germany and James Courtney of Australia. Despite a promising start to the season, with Irvine finishing fourth and De la Rosa eighth in the opening Australian Grand Prix, the rest of the campaign turned into an ordeal. After a string of retirements and low finishes, Jaguar engineers admitted mistakes made in the wind tunnel during the design of the new car, caused by simple calculation errors.
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| JAGUAR R3, Eddie Irvine Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian GP 2002 |
The lack of budget and Ford executives’ waning interest in racing made it impossible to recover, and results remained deeply disappointing, despite some modifications that led to the R3B version from mid-season onward. Only Irvine managed to score a few more points toward the end of the championship, with sixth place at Spa-Francorchamps and a surprising third at Monza, the only podium in Jaguar’s short Formula 1 history, alongside the one at Monaco in 2001, also achieved by Irvine. The 2002 season ended on a dismal note, with just 8 points and seventh place in the Constructors’ Championship. At season’s end, Ford’s management stripped Lauda of his role as team principal and dismissed over 60 employees, although Lauda was asked to stay on in a simple advisory role due to his existing contract. He chose instead to leave the company, being paid by Ford not to take on roles with other teams during the 2003 season.
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