Fisi praying for rain.

Win if Wet!
By Phil Giles
July 15 2003

Giancarlo Fisichella feels that the his best chances at Silverstone depend on a wet race as the EJ13's Performance has been best when there's a little moisture on the tarmac.

He said "I would be most happy if the weather turns and we have a wet race because so far this year my car has performed well in rainy conditions and I think it’s our best chance of getting a decent result.".  This seems to follow on from the despondent Italian's current frame of mind.  However the team and Fisi have been concentrating their recent efforts on preparations for the race at the Northamptonshire Circuit.

Gary Anderson however is a bit more optimistic of Jordan's chances this weekend and believes that Bridgestone have closed the gap to Michelin. "Over the last couple of races we seem to have lost our way a little bit but hopefully we’ve got ourselves back together again and will improve over the weekend." He said.  "I believe that Bridgestone will be advantageous here, which may give us a better opportunity and also the changeable weather forecast might work in our favour. On the basis of the testing we’ve done at Silverstone, the car hasn’t been too bad."

"It would be good to get a points result here as it’s great to be racing at home and I hope we can put on a good show for the fans." He continued.

The Director of Race and Engineering believed that the teams recent lack of pace was down to the wrong set-up. "At the European Grand Prix, we didn’t have a good car in terms of set-up so at the French Grand Prix we tried something different to find some lap time.

"With hindsight maybe we did the wrong thing at the wrong time and instead of moving forwards to sixth or seventh we went backwards. But you have to keep looking for new things. You can’t just sit back and accept what you’ve got as there are constant developments and improvements to find.

"Sometimes changes work, sometimes they don’t but you have to take that risk. We will go out at Silverstone with a reasonably stable set-up package and work from there.

Eddie is looking forward to seeing all of the home support for the team, particularly from his dedicated countrymen. "Racing at Silverstone is like coming home in many ways. It’s the only chance that factory-based staff get to watch our cars race, and see their hard work coming to fruition. And the encouragement from our fans thrills me each year, particularly with all the dedicated supporters from Ireland who come over for this event."

Meanwhile, Ralph has been preparing for the event in a variety of ways.  "I’ve been enjoying a busy schedule since the last race, with two days of testing in Barcelona, participating in the hill climb at Goodwood Festival of Speed and a variety of sponsor and media activity in the build-up to my home race. It’s been good to get more time in the car and to experience the support there is for me in Britain and Ireland. Although Silverstone is a tricky circuit, it’s one I know from testing and I’m looking forward to the challenge. I can’t wait to race in front of the home crowd and I’m looking to score points."

Remember that the factory will be open to all Jordan Fans over the three day weekend with discounts going to Club Jordan members on the various pieces of merchandise that will be available.  Team boss and both drivers are due to make personal appearances at the Factory and hopefully will be signing some autographs. 

I'm not going to be there so I'd appreciate your view of the weekend on the Messageboard.