30^th September 2001

american gp. the race.

Luckily, there were no incidents at the start, although Jarno did have a coming together with Kimi Raikonnen shortly afterwards, caused by Kimi outbraking himself and running into the back of Heidfeld. Jarno was defending his position but although Kimi pitted for a new front, the Jordan continued unhindered. Most drivers were on a one stop strategy although Barrichello made two stops. He had taken over the lead from Michael Schumacher, but later lost it to Montoya. Montoya retired with a blown engine and the same fate befell Rubens close to the end. This meant that Jarno, who had driven a strong race moved up to 4^th place. Mika Hakkinen won the race, followed by MS, DC, Jarno, Eddie Irvine and Nick Heidfeld.

Jarno Trulli 4th

Jean Alesi 7th (1 lap down)

An outstanding race performance from Jarno Trulli secured the Italian a fourth place finish and a

well deserved additional three points for the Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda team at today’s

United States Grand Prix. The team now holds fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship with

19 points.

Jean Alesi’s 200^th Grand Prix race performance was as commendable as ever, with the

Frenchman overtaking five cars during the race, although he unfortunately finished just outside the

points in seventh place.

Jarno Trulli Car 11 Position: 4^th Chassis: EJ11 / 05

T-car Chassis: EJ11 / 03

“I am really happy for myself and the team to have achieved such a fantastic result in today’s race.

We’ve had a lot of bad luck this season during the races, so it feels really satisfying to finish a race and

bring home three points, which are vital to our championship fight. I made a good start and enjoyed the

racing. I was pushing very hard to pull away from the cars behind me, in order to gain as much of a

gap as possible, but I also wanted to have a steady race to try and avoid any problems. Our race

strategy was good and the team did a great job during the pit stop so I would like to thank them. I also

want to add that Jean’s excellent performance today made him look like a real ‘young gun’, and not

someone who has just completed 200 Grands Prix.”

Jean Alesi Car 12 Position: 7^th Chassis: EJ11 / 04

“I really enjoyed my 200^th Grand Prix with some exciting racing and overtaking today, although I am

disappointed to have finished just outside of a points position. Unfortunately I didn’t have a very good

start so lost a few places at the beginning. Running on new tyres was also quite hard going and it’s a

shame I couldn’t find enough speed to finish in the top six. I pushed the car to the limit and gave my

maximum effort today, as always. I am so happy that Jarno scored three points today – he has had so

much bad luck this season that he and the team deserve this great result.”

Eddie Jordan, Chief Executive

“We are all delighted with today’s result with both cars finishing in strong positions. Jarno drove an

incredible race to score some well deserved points for himself and the team and Jean’s performance

was as commendable as ever. This has given the team a great morale boost and solid platform to build

on for the final race of the season in Suzuka, in our quest to achieve fourth place in the championship.”

29^th September 2001

american gp. qualifying.

Jarno was the top Honda driver in qualifying again today, finishing 8^th with a 1:12.605 , while Jean Alesi was just a fraction behind in 9^th with 1:12.607. Top 6: MS (1:11.708), Mika, RS, JPM, Rubens, Heidfeld. Horror of horrors, Jenson Button qualified 10^th which means he is just behind Jarno on the grid. He wouldn’t try it again, surely???

Jarno Trulli 8^th 1:12.605 11 laps

Jean Alesi 9^th 1:12.607 12 laps

In a tightly fought qualifying session, both Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda drivers, Jarno

Trulli and Jean Alesi, displayed an impressive performance to achieve top ten grid positions

with just two thousandths of a second difference between their lap times.

Jean Alesi experienced a trouble free hour, achieving his best lap time on his final run

team found a very good car balance as it fine tuned the set-up to suit Alesi’s driving style and

the circuit’s characteristics.

Jarno Trulli was unable to improve on his best lap time, set during his third outing, as circuit

traffic hindered his final run.

Jarno Trulli Car 11 Position: 8^th Time: 1:12.605 Chassis: EJ11 / 05

“Our qualifying positions are better than we had expected so I feel this is a good achievement

today. It was a very tough session and I wasn’t able to improve on my best lap time as I had to abort my last run due to traffic. From the data it is clear that I need to find more speed to be

competitive tomorrow, but I am looking forward to the race as I think I have a good chance of

scoring points from my grid position. “

Eddie Jordan, Chief Executive Officer

“It was a difficult qualifying session so Jarno and Jean did very well to finish in the top ten. It was impressive to see Jean so close to Jarno, who we know is superb in qualifying. They both took full advantage of the cars’ current potential and we have a good chance tomorrow.” perform

29^th September 2001

american gp. saturday practice.

A bit slow at times and a fairly uneventful Saturday practice as the teams worked through their set up programmes. In the second session it was 11^th place for driver 11, as Jarno dropped one place from the first session, with a time of 1:13.205. Alesi took 13^th place in both sessions with a final best time of 1:13.675. Top 6: MS (1:12.078), Mika, Heidfeld, Ralf, Rubens, JPM.

28^th September 2001

american gp. friday practice.

An uneventful Friday practice, no crashes a few spins and just the odd mechanical failure. Jarno finished 7^th quickest in the first session with Jean Alesi way down in 19^th place. In the second session with the overall times, Jarno was 14^th quickest, while Jean Alesi leapfrogged him into 12^th at the end.

Jean Alesi 12^th 1:14.057 33 laps

Jarno Trulli 14^th 1:14.215 38 laps

Both Trulli and Alesi worked through a routine race set-up programme during the two sessions,

although Alesi’s running time was hindered by a software problem that affected his EJ11’s

electronic system.

Jarno Trulli Car 11 Position: 14^th Time: 1:14.215 Chassis: EJ11 / 05

“It was a routine day working through car set-up for the race. I had a trouble free session although we

have not yet found the ideal balance and there were a few problems with the tyres in the first session

which caused me to spin twice, although I was able to recover and keep the car on the track. We

changed the tyres and the car felt much better this afternoon.”

24^th September 2001

american gp. preview.

Jarno Trulli on the United States Grand Prix:

“Racing at Indianapolis is a great experience – you’re racing on such a historic circuit in front of

200,000 fans who pack out the grandstands. The track is quite complex with the very long and fast

straight, followed by the infield which is quite slow and twisty so it’s a challenge to find an ideal set-up.

The track surface is built for Formula One, but it’s great that the circuit still displays its history with the

famous yard of bricks on the start/finish line. I’m hoping for an incident free race as I would like to

make it to the finish at Indianapolis. I had to retire from last year’s race after Button hit me, causing a

mechanical problem with my car.”

16^th September 2001

italian gp. the race.

After representations from some drivers that there should be no overtaking at the first two corners for safety reasons, Jarno might wish that Jenson Button had adhered to this. The boy Button, who had charged down the outside, hit Jarno from behind at the first corner, immediately ending Jarno’s race. He got his comeuppance though, having to pit for a new front wing and soon after retiring with engine failure. Then he had to face the wrath of Flavio Briatore, who is already displeased with him, which serves him right. Back to the race. Everyone else got off to a good start and it was a Williams/Ferrari tussle for podium places. The McLarens left the race early, DC with a blown engine and Hakkinen with a gearbox problem. Enge and Yoong both acquitted themselves well in their first GP, Enge finishing in 12^th place and Yoong retiring after a spin only 9 laps from the end. Ferrari employed a strange two stop strategy, possibly due to brake problems, that ultimately cost them the race. Montoya won his first GP, Barrichello was second, followed by Ralf, then Michael Schumacher, de la Rosa, and Villeneuve. Jean Alesi finished 8^th.

Jean Alesi 8^th (1 lap down)

Jarno Trulli DNF (first corner collision on lap 1)

From Jordan GP: Starting from fifth on the grid, Jarno Trulli’s race was ended by a wild out-braking manoeuvre by Jenson Button (Benetton) who careered into Trulli coming into the first chicane.

Alesi made a fantastic start to overtake four cars by the end of the first lap, gaining a further two positions before his first pit stop on lap 22 when he was running in fifth place. A flat spotted front tyre resulted in an earlier than scheduled pit stop, preventing him from maximising his race strategy.

Jarno Trulli Car 11 Position: DNF (first corner collision on lap 1)

Chassis: EJ11 / 05

“I made a very good start and kept my position into the first corner, but Button hit the rear of my car as he turned in and pushed me into a spin, ending my race. He clearly, badly misjudged his braking but I was already in the corner so there was nothing I could do. I’m disappointed that again, I have been unable to finish a race through circumstances beyond my control.”

Eddie Jordan, Chief Executive

“For Jarno’s race to be over at such an early stage was extremely disappointing, particularly as the first corner incident could have been easily avoided had Button not been so desperate to try and win the race at the first corner. I feel very sorry for Jarno. Jean drove very strongly and ran competitively with the front runners in what was a tough race. Unfortunately, he felt he had a puncture so had to make an early pit stop which cost him valuable time. It is a great shame not to have scored some points today given Jarno’s excellent grid position and Jean’s competitive race performance.”

16^th September 2001

italian gp. warm up.

Jarno was 6^th quickest in the warm up this morning, just ahead of team mate Alesi in 7^th. Only four tenths separated the top 6 who were: MS, DC, JPM, RB, KR, JT.

15^th September 2001

italian gp qualifying.

An eventful qualifying session with cars breaking down all over the place. Poor Minardi had a bad day. After their problems in morning practice, they sent Yoong out for qualifying with what appeared to be the same gearbox software problem. Alonso found the same thing, so the two drivers had to share the spare car. Fortunately both managed to qualify, as did rookie Tomas Enge in the Prost, despite two mechanical failures during the qualifying hour. Fisichella also had a mechanical failure, which required a jog back to the pits for the spare. Amazingly the Jordans lasted the hour, with Jarno qualifying a great 5^th, although Alesi was down in 16^th, despite recording the top speed on the circuit. Mika Hakkinen had a big accident on his last outing which caused the session to be red-flagged for several minutes at the end of the session, but fortunately, Mika is OK. Top 6: JPM, Rubens, Michael Ralf, Jarno, DC.

Jarno Trulli 5^th 1:23.126

Jean Alesi 16^th 1:24.198

From Jordan GP: A superb qualifying performance from Jarno Trulli places the Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda team on the third row of the grid for tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix. Circuit traffic, coupled with brake setting difficulties, hindered Alesi’s performance and resulted in his unrepresentative qualifying position.

Jarno Trulli Car 11 Position: 5^th Time: 1:23.126 Chassis: EJ11 / 05

T-car Chassis: EJ11 / 03

“I am really pleased with this result for myself and the team. Everybody did a great job and I was able to push the car to the limit. I’m looking forward to the race tomorrow as the car is well balanced and it seems that the tyres Bridgestone has brought for this race are quite competitive. I would like to thank everybody for their work in achieving this result today.”

Eddie Jordan, Chief Executive Officer

“Jarno did a brilliant job today to qualify in front of the two McLarens and it was incredibly disappointing for Jean, particularly at a circuit where he is usually very strong. He has led races here in the past and we have to find out what the problem is as his position is not an accurate reflection of Jean’s or the car’s capabilities.”

15^th September 2001

italian gp. saturday practice.

Bizarre first session, when only 13 drivers set a time, presumably waiting for the damp track to dry. MS, both McLarens and Alonso failed to appear at all. Both Benettons, Yoong and Alesi only managed 2 laps with no competitive time. Jarno did 5 laps at the end, only managing 12^th with 1:30.536. To put this in perspective, Tomas Enge taking part in his first GP was 11^th. Top 6: JPM, Rubens, Pedro, Jacques, Olivier, Kimi.

The second session showed a vast improvement as times came tumbling down. The Minardis had problems with the cars and neither car set a time, only Yoong getting out for 2 laps, unfortunate in his first GP. Top 6: MS, JPM, Jarno, Rubens, DC, Ralf.

14^th September 2001

italian gp. friday practice.

An eventful first session with drivers crashing all over the place. Following the announcement that he will take Mika Hakkinen’s place at McLaren next season, Kimi Raikonnen celebrated by having a heavy crash after 4 laps. Hope Ron Dennis wasn’t watching! Jos Verstappen had already trashed his car without setting a time. Not to be outdone by Kimi, Nick Heidfeld also crashed into the Armco. A steady uneventful session for the Jordan drivers: Jarno finished 9^th quickest and Alesi 17^th. Top 6: MS, DC, Rubens, NH, Mika, Jenson.

In the second session, Eddie Irvine crashed early on, but everyone else made it through unscathed. Top 6: Ralf (1:24.667), JPM, MS, Pedro, Rubens, Mika.

Jean Alesi 9^th 1:25.849 37 laps Jarno Trulli 12^th 1:25.987 39 laps

Both drivers carried out tyre and brake evaluations over long runs, as Monza is notoriously harsh on these elements. Good progress was made during the sessions to achieve an improved brake balance for both EJ11 cars.

Jarno Trulli Car 11

Position: 12^th Time: 1:25.987 Chassis: EJ11 / 05 T-car Chassis: EJ11 / 03

“The car set-up is good although I found the session quite difficult. We spent a lot of time concentrating on the brakes but I feel we have made good progress in this area. There is still some work to do tomorrow as we didn’t have time to complete the tyre evaluation, but I feel confident for qualifying.”

Trevor Foster, Joint Managing Director

“It was a trouble free morning overall - the only minor problem occurring when Jean ran over a kerb and damaged the underside of the chassis which lost him thirty minutes of track time. We ran on high fuel loads in order to fully evaluate the tyres and brakes, which are always put under strain at this circuit. We worked to find an improved brake setting by concentrating on longer runs and have made good progress, although the time spent on this has reduced set-up time in other areas so we still have some work to do for tomorrow.”

12^th September 2001

italian gp. preview.

Jarno Trulli on the Italian Grand Prix

“Monza is a great circuit and I believe that we can really challenge for points there as the car is

strong and suited to circuits of this nature. It would be great to produce a points scoring finish in front

of my home fans.”

9^th-10^th September 2001

honda’s new car plant opens.

To mark the occasion, Honda drivers Jarno Trulli, Jean Alesi, Jacques Villeneuve and Olivier Panis are took part in the official opening ceremonies in Swindon, Wiltshire. On Sunday 9^th, the drivers entertained 8000 factory workers and guests with display runs on the car test track which is usually used to test the Honda Civic. As far as we know, there were no engine failures.

On Monday 10^th, theF1 drivers were joined by Eddie Jordan and Craig Pollock to help the President of the Honda Motor Company open the assembly line.

2^nd September 2001

belgian gp. the race.

At the start HHF stalls on the grid and has to start from the back. On lap 5 there is a big accident as Irvine and Burti touch at Blanchimont and Burti’s Prost hurtles into the tyre wall which collapses on top of him. The grandstands go quiet as everyone watches the marshals and Eddie trying to move the tyres. The race is stopped while Burti is removed from the Prost, into the medical car, the helicopter and into hospital with concussion and bruising. The race ready to re-start, Montoya stalls, and has to start from the back. Next re-start and Ralf is left on blocks with his wheels off the ground. Back you go, Ralfie. With the race finally underway, and MS ahead, Fisichella runs in second place for most of it, finally giving way to DC at Eau Rouge. The Jordans run in a strong 5^th (Trulli) and 6^th (Alesi) until the inevitable engine blow up for Jarno. Alesi holds off Ralf to score a welcome point for the team. Top 6: MS, DC, Fisi, Mika, Barrichello, Alesi.

Jean Alesi 5th

Jarno Trulli DNF (engine failure on lap 32/36)

A commendable drive to a sixth place finish for Jean Alesi in today’s Belgian Grand Prix continued the Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda team’s run of success at Spa. The long overdue points finish now elevates the team to joint fifth in the championship. Chances of scoring further points were dashed when the engine failed in Jarno Trulli’s EJ11 AGAIN just four laps from the end of the race, while the Italian was running strongly in fifth place.

Jarno Trulli Car 11

Position: DNF (engine failure on lap 32/36)

Chassis: EJ11 / 05

“I made a very good start at the re-start and really enjoyed the race. It was great to be able to overtake two cars, Jacques (Villeneuve) and Jean (Alesi), on the first lap under braking on the back straight and I was able to pull away from the cars behind me and achieve competitive lap times. Unfortunately the engine failed just four laps from the end when I was set to finish in fifth place. It is great though that Jean was able to bring home a point for the team and I am happy that today the car’s performance provided me with the opportunity to race competitively.”

Eddie Jordan, Chief Executive

“To come away from this race with a point is incredible and far more than I could have expected given our poor qualifying performance. Jean made a brilliant start in the first part and Jarno did the same at the re-start. We were strongly holding fifth and sixth positions overall for the majority of the race so looking very strong for both cars to finish in the points. For Jarno’s race to be over just four laps from the end was frustrating but Jean drove a very commendable race to hold off Ralf to the finish line, and both Jarno and Jean did a great job for the team today. With the exception of Michael, who was in a league of his own, the outstanding drivers today were Jean, Jarno and Giancarlo. It was great to see Giancarlo on the podium, proving his true racing talent, and we hope that he can achieve plenty more podiums next year. I’d like to say well done to Michael as well, for making history ten years on from his debut Grand Prix at this race.”

1^st September 2001

belgian gp. qualifying.

Jean Alesi 13^th 1:59.128

Jarno Trulli 16 th 1:59.647

It was a disheartening qualifying for The Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda team.

Despite running competitively in wet conditions, Trulli and Alesi paid the penalty for running on intermediate, rather than grooved tyres when a dry line appeared at the end of the session. Top 6: JPM, Ralf, MS, HHF, Rubens, JVill.

Jarno Trulli Car 11

Position: 16^th Time: 1:59.647 Chassis: EJ11 / 05 T-car Chassis: EJ11 / 03

“It was a difficult qualifying as the track conditions were changing all the time. I made my first run in the wet on intermediate tyres and my lap times were quite competitive, but at the end of the session, the track dried out very quickly and I didn’t have enough time to change to grooved tyres which cost me valuable seconds. The race is not going to be easy, and I am not happy starting from such a low grid position, but the car feels good so I am confident I can have a good race and just try to score some points for the team.”

1^st September 2001

belgian gp. saturday practice.

The practice session was delayed for two hours and subsequently reduced to just one forty-five minute session, because although the track was clear, there was fog in the area, and the medical helicopter would have been unable to land at the local hospital in Verviers should it be required. The team concentrated on qualifying set-up for both EJ11 cars in the limited time available, withTrulli and Alesi finishing in 10^th and 11th positions respectively having found a good car balance. Top 6: JPM, Ralf, Mika, DC, Rubens, Fisi.