Jorda 'surprised' by Mouton criticisms
Carmen Jorda believes Michele Mouton should have understood better exactly what she was doing with Lotus before criticising her efforts to test a Formula 1 car.
Mouton, who won four World Rally Championship events and is head of the FIA's Women in Motorsport commission, caused a stir last week when she said that she had no interest in Jorda's exploits.
"If I would suggest names of female drivers who have what it takes to make it to F1, I'd say Simona de Silvestro, Danica Patrick, Susie Wolff or even Beitske Visser, who is performing well in the Formula Renault 3.5 series," she said when asked about her views on Jorda.
"These girls have scored very good results in their career. Other less successful girls have managed to climb the motorsport ladder, but that has more to do with marketing strategies and political reasons, and I am not interested in that."
Surprised by remarks
Jorda is hoping to be able to drive a Lotus car at a filming day later this year, after beginning a development programme with the Enstone-based outfit earlier this season.
Speaking to Motorsport.com about Mouton's remarks, Jorda said that she was amazed Mouton had been so critical without fully understanding what she was up to.
"It really surprised me because if you don't know anybody – I don't know her, she doesn't know me – then you wouldn't talk about them like that," said Jorda.
"I haven't had the chance to tell her what is my programme. She had good achievements in rallying and she gave us a reason to believe in motorsport, but I don't think rallying is the same as F1. So, it really surprised me."
Open invite
Jorda says she is eager to invite Mouton to an F1 race so she can better understand exactly what her plans are with Lotus – and especially the high demands involved in driving a grand prix car.
"I was trying to make contact with her about two years ago, but we never managed to meet up," she said. "It has been hard to get in contact with her but I told her, 'look, come to a race.' It never happened.
"I am going to try again and I will tell her come here, and I will show her what I am doing, and what is an F1 car.
"Maybe she has driven an F1 car in the past but I never saw her doing anything close to F1. I don't have anything against rallying, it is a really good achievement what she did, but I don't know about rallying, and maybe she doesn't know about F1.
"I am happy for her to come, to show her and show my programme."
Share Or Save This Story
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Jorda explains absence from W Series driver selection
FIA women drivers’ assessment proves “burgeoning pool of quality”
Female racers 'disheartened' by Jorda FIA appointment
The Lotus 72 was "an extension of my body," Emerson Fittipaldi reveals
Romain Grosjean turns 40 – here’s his career in 10 key moments
Ayrton Senna's 1986 Lotus F1 car hits auction for eight-figure estimate
Why Red Bull's 'crazy' power unit success matters so much for F1
“Am I confident? Probably not” – The unprecedented challenge Singapore is throwing at F1 drivers
“Unfinished business” for Max Verstappen – Has Red Bull finally fixed its Singapore weakness?
Team Penske and Chevrolet announce multi-year extension of IndyCar partnership
Why Red Bull's 'crazy' power unit success matters so much for F1
No denying it now – the one reason why F1’s ‘horrible’ start in Malaysia could be a good thing
The greatest F1 campaigns with no wins
Three kings: F1's generational stars shone at Sepang
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments