The disappointing 2002 season cast dark shadows over the future of one of the most beloved British teams of the 1990s, Jordan Grand Prix. In addition to the already expected end of the partnership with Honda, with the Japanese manufacturer having decided to support only British American Racing even before the conclusion of the 2002 season, the team also lost one of its two main sponsors. DHL, the courier owned by Deutsche Post, chose not to renew its costly Formula 1 sponsorship due to poor results, leaving the British team based in Silverstone, Northamptonshire, right next to the famous English circuit, with an all-yellow livery practically devoid of sponsors. The only name left on the sides of the Jordan cars was Benson & Hedges, a cigarette brand produced in Northern Ireland by the English Gallaher Group, although its financial contribution was further reduced after the drastic cut already made in the previous season.
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| JORDAN EJ13, Giancarlo Fisichella Silverstone, British GP 2003 |
Throughout his more than a decade in Formula 1, Eddie Jordan had always been regarded as an excellent talent scout, and his team had consistently included skilled engineers who later moved on to more prestigious teams and achieved significant success. Unfortunately for the Irish manager, in recent years top engineers such as Mike Gascoyne, Eghbal Hamidy, Tim Holloway, Mark Smith, Bob Bell, and John Iley had all left. As a result, his team was left with just Gary Anderson as Technical Director and John McQuilliam as Chief Designer, both already in place in 2002. With a budget significantly below 70 million dollars, Jordan was forced to cut staff, letting go of many engineers. However, French engineer Henri Durand joined the team. Having previously worked alongside John Barnard at Ferrari and Neil Oatley at McLaren, Durand had spent the last few years at Prost Grand Prix until the team’s closure. At Jordan, he took on the role of Director of Vehicle Development and Design, while Italian engineer Nicolò Petrucci, a graduate of the Polytechnic University of Milan specializing in aerodynamics, with previous experience at Ferrari’s wind tunnel and later at Arrows, was appointed Head of Aerodynamics starting in 2003.
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| JORDAN EJ13, Ralph Firman Montecarlo, Monaco GP 2003 |
Unfortunately for Jordan’s technical staff, without sufficient funding the team could not go far. The new EJ13 was merely a reworking of the uncompetitive EJ12 from the previous year. The few visual updates were most noticeable at the front, where the wing, still supported by two pylons forming an inverted V, no longer featured three straight segments but instead had a smoother spoon-shaped design. The nose was also less steep, the sidepods were slightly set back and retained the slanted chimneys for hot air extraction. In front of the rear wheels were the now-standard winglets to divert airflow, plus a pair of small additional wings. Under the engine cover lay the true novelty of the new car: the Ford RS1 engine. Having failed to secure an exclusive supplier, Eddie Jordan turned directly to Ford. After the American manufacturer’s disastrous experience with its Jaguar team, which led William Clay Ford Jr. to drastically cut funding and rebadge the V10s as Cosworth only, Jordan hoped to secure an exclusive partnership. Thus, the EJ13 bore the classic Ford oval for the first time since the Stewart Grand Prix cars of 1999. However, Ford only supplied Jordan with the old Cosworth CR-4 V10s, unupdated but simply renamed Ford RS1. The Anglo-American V10 was capable of producing 810 hp at 17,500 rpm, but its specifications and electronics were outdated and uncompetitive. The engine, combined with a poor-quality Jordan seven-speed gearbox, caused no fewer than 12 retirements during the season.
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| JORDAN EJ13, Ralph Firman Indianapolis, United States GP 2003 |
On the driver front, Italian Giancarlo Fisichella was confirmed, while Japanese driver Takuma Satō, having lost Honda’s backing, was replaced by emerging Irish driver Ralph Firman. Eddie Jordan’s hunt for young talent continued with the signing of Swedish rookie Bjorn Wirdheim as test driver. Wirdheim had been named Rookie of the Year in the 2002 International F3000 Championship and would become champion in 2003, breaking Montoya’s points record. To save costs, the team completed very few preseason test miles. With an underperforming, unreliable car and an inadequate engine, Jordan began the 2003 season on the back foot. After lackluster showings in Australia and Malaysia, an entirely unexpected result came in Brazil. In a chaotic race at Interlagos disrupted by changing weather, Fisichella achieved an incredible victory, the first of his career and Jordan Grand Prix’s fourth and final win. The Brazilian GP was cut short due to a serious crash on the main straight, and initially the win was awarded to Räikkönen, who received the winner’s trophy on the podium. Only later was the error acknowledged, and at the following San Marino GP at Imola, Fisichella and Räikkönen exchanged trophies in a ceremony on track before the weekend began.
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| JORDAN EJ13, Giancarlo Fisichella Suzuka, Japanese GP 2003 |
Of course, the Brazilian victory was a mere flash in the pan during an otherwise forgettable season. If not for the new sporting regulations that awarded points to the top eight finishers starting in 2003, Brazil would have been the team’s only points finish. The only other notable results were Fisichella’s seventh place in the United States and Firman’s eighth in Spain. The Irish driver also suffered a serious crash during practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which sidelined him for two races and led to his replacement by Hungarian driver Zsolt Baumgartner, the first Hungarian to race in Formula 1. Jordan’s disappointing 2003 season ended with just 13 points and ninth place in the Constructors’ Championship, ahead only of Minardi, stranded in last place with zero points.
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