Jordan looking for improvement in Imola

By Phil Giles
April 18 2005

Despite the appearance of the official Jordan site, it's been a busy time behind the scenes at Jordan Grand Prix. The team are currently preparing for the first race of the European F1 season.

Despite not attending next weeks Silverstone test session, the team have been running at Paul Ricard in France, preparing for the next few races developing the car and working with Bridgestone on their tyre development programme.

"The test at Paul Ricard last week went very well." said a pleased Narain "We did a lot of work trying to find the right Bridgestone tyres for San Marino but also for the next European races. We have also tested some new parts for the car and we are definitely making some progress. I did a lot of kilometres and I am particularly happy with my fitness."

Both drivers were in attendance at Paul Ricard completing over 1000km's.

"The two-day test we had at Paul Ricard was quite successful and interesting." said Tiago.  "We worked on some tyre construction with Bridgestone and I think we are on the right direction. It was difficult to have a proper idea, as we were the only Bridgestone runners at the test.  We also tested different pieces for the car not only for Imola but also for the forthcoming races. It was definitely a good test and a good motivation to move on and push harder every time."

Paul Monaghan, Chief Race Engineer said "It was an encouraging test as we have made a little bit of progress; especially in taking a couple of small steps forward in terms of tyre development for Imola and the races beyond. We have done a lot of work on the set-up of the car, which looked quite promising."

"We have added more than 1000km to the car's mileage without serious problems so the reliability is good. Now the drivers need to develop their knowledge of the car a little bit more and get used to the kerbed circuit."

With Imola looming, there's a bit of apprehension in the squad.  Narain is the teams only driver never to have raced there before.

"I do not really know what to expect from Imola because out of the Jordan drivers, I am the only one that has never driven on this circuit." he said.  "It looks like I will need to use the kerbs a lot to get a good time, which will probably be a bit tricky. But having said that, Malaysia was also difficult, however I did well there so I am ready for the challenge and I will give my best."

Tiago said: "Imola is not an easy circuit for the kind of car we have at the moment but generally I like this type of track. It will be very bumpy on the kerbs and very violent. Reliability throughout the weekend will again be very important and we will make sure we will keep on doing a good job as we have done since the beginning of the season and have a good result at the end."

The teams third driver Robert Doornbos said "I am really looking forward to Imola because it is the first round in Europe. I know the circuit very well, as it is where I had my first success in F3000 last year. I really enjoy driving there. It is a special track because you really need to set up the car for the high kerbstones and this will be a challenge for the drivers and the team. The three-week gap seems an eternity; I cannot wait to drive on Friday."

Sporting Director, Trevor Carlin said: "Imola is not an easy circuit for the kind of car we have at the moment but generally I like this type of track. It will be very bumpy on the kerbs and very violent. Reliability throughout the weekend will again be very important and we will make sure we will keep on doing a good job as we have done since the beginning of the season and have a good result at the end."

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