German GP: Jordan race notes

Takuma Sato delivered his strongest drive of the season to finish in 8th place, his best result to date. However, DHL Jordan Honda was unable to fulfil the potential of the EJ12, with points escaping Giancarlo Fisichella after a series of mishaps cost him places and finally forced him to retire. Fisichella lost his position at the start and later a minor `off' going into the stadium section cost him two places, however he pushed hard to move up to 6th place during the first pit stops. When he came in on lap 27, the team had trouble with the front right wheel nut and to make matters worse, the engine stalled. He retired on lap 60 when his engine failed.

TAKUMA SATO

"Eighth is my best finish so far which is a great result for me. It's a shame it wasn't inside the points, but I am getting closer. I had an exciting race, overtaking a couple of people with some dramatic moves, which was really enjoyable. The pit stop strategy worked well. At the end of the race I lost some stability with the car, but I kept going. Looking forward, our good form is a promising sign and points are my next target."

GIANCARLO FISICHELLA

"I had a problem with the clutch on my first pit stop and then the team had trouble with the right front wheel, so I lost quite a lot of time. The car was driving quite well so it's a shame. I am disappointed about having to retire this time but we are getting better so I'm looking ahead to the next race."

EDDIE JORDAN CHIEF EXECUTIVE

"We had a chance for 6th place with Giancarlo but unfortunately a problem in the pit stop with the right front wheel cost him a lot of time and finally his engine went, which is a shame. Takuma drove a good race and did well to go from 12th place to finish 8th. I am hopeful for the future because our performance has improved, but I am disappointed that we didn't come away from this race with a couple of points."

TAKUMA SATO 8th
CHASSIS NUMBER 4
GIANCARLO FISICHELLA DNF (engine failure lap 60)
CHASSIS NUMBER 6

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