Team Principals
Chief Executive - Eddie Jordan
From modest beginnings as a mid-field racing driver in the 1970s Eddie Jordan has, in the space of 20 years, become one of Formula One's biggest players. In what has become a big business sport, dominated by blue chip corporations and motor manufactures, Eddie Jordan is the only entrepreneur to have successfully established an F1 team and to remain its majority shareholder. His charisma, energy and love of life have driven his team, Jordan Grand Prix, into the top three in the World Championship for Constructors.
Jordan began his career as a banker, making the switch to motor racing after experiencing the thrill of karting during a summer spent in Jersey. After progressing through various motor sport categories (see Career Highlights), winning several races and championships, he made his second career switch, this time from driver to team owner. "I was married with one child and another on the way, and we had no money", explains Jordan. "It would have been selfish to continue." And so, in 1980, Eddie Jordan Racing was born.
As Team Owner, Jordan could sell, he could charm, and he knew how to make a race team work; all the necessary ingredients which were to give him almost immediate success. After ten years in the lower formulae, he entered the jewel in motor racing's crown - Formula One - with the creation of Jordan Grand Prix in 1991. The team finished its debut year in an impressive fifth place in the World Championship and brought to the sport an energy and vibrance previously unknown. Nine years on, Jordan Grand Prix boasts a string of victories and membership of the Formula One elite.
Jordan is a key player on the F1 field, negotiating contracts with major sponsors and breaking new ground by securing investment from global equity investor, Warburg, Pincus (Jordan Grand Prix was the first F1 team to gain investment from a financial institution). Alongside the business image, however, Jordan retains his sense of fun. Who else would play drums at an impromptu rock concert or phone home as soon as a race is finished to find out the football scores. "I have been accused of not being a serious operator," says Jordan, "and that used to hurt. But I know what we have achieved and when I look at Jordan's history, from our victories in Formula Ford, F3 and F3000, to our impressive results in F1, I feel very proud. I hope to be able to look back on 1999 as being the season which really gave us the break to move up and become World Champions. I, and the team around me, believe in what we are doing. The question is, how far can we go? I believe we can go all the way."
Director of Race and Test Engineering - Gary Anderson
Anderson, 51, was born and lived in Northern Ireland before coming to England in 1972 to begin his Formula One career. Anderson initially joined Jordan at its inception in 1990 and was the technical brain behind its cars over an eight year span, and returned in December 2001 as Director or Race and Test Engineering following a three year absence. Reporting to Jordan’s Chief Operating Officer, John Putt, Anderson is responsible for the development of the Jordan Honda EJ12, working to feed back information from races and tests to the design office.
Director of Design and Development - Henri Durand
Henri Durand, 41, joined Jordan in March as Director of Design and Development. Born in Mazamet, France, he took his career inspiration from the aerospace industry in nearby Toulouse. His career commenced with four year spells at Ligier and Ferrari, before joining McLaren where he worked for over a decade between 1990 and 2000 heading up the team's aerodynamics group. In 2001 he joined Prost Grand Prix as Technical Director. His move to Jordan in 2002 sees him running the technical team with Director of Race and Test Engineering, Gary Anderson.
Chief Financial Officer - Richard O'Driscoll
Irish born O’Driscoll, 43, was appointed Chief Financial Officer in October 1992 to bring financial controls and procedures to Jordan. He was previously a Career Banker with fifteen successful years experience in Ireland’s largest bank, both in Ireland and the UK. Having witnessed Jordan’s extensive growth during his time with the team, O’Driscoll’s role has expanded to now incorporate responsibility for finance of the Jordan group companies, IT, human resources and overseeing the day to day running of the Jordan businesses.
The Drivers
