Irvine is Focused and Serious, Says Cosworth Boss

Nick Hayes, boss of Jaguar's engine builder Cosworth, has praised Jaguar driver Irvine for his focus and seriousness, despite his carefree playboy image.

Irvine's perseverance through a tough debut year for Jaguar impressed the Cosworth boss. "He's good at most aspects of driving," Hayes told Autosport magazine, "but he's really good at things you can't see. He is focused and he tries hard. He's reminded me of a lot of top-line drivers I've worked with, and I don’t know why people criticise him."

"Eddie is certainly good at technical feedback, he always has his own views and has helped sort things out. He does things in races that are pretty amazing when we ask him. He understands what is needed and he pushes. He's actually very serious."

With over seven seasons of Formula One competition, Irvine know how to be successful, after spending four years with top team Ferrari. Irvine is applying his knowledge to help move Jaguar onwards and upwards. "It's very different from Ferrari and it's taken time to understand," he said. "But the team is coming together. I tell them everything I know, and it's up to them to make the decision about whether or not it's worth doing. I'm not the technical director â€" I can only say what I think and let the team make their decision."

Irvine is confident that his years in the sport mean that his ideas about problems and solutions are valid. "I'm not a genius," Irvine told Autosport. "But for a driver I've a fairly good idea of the whole picture. I've had a good education; I've been lucky in that each place I've been in my career I've learned a lot. In Japan it was tyres, at Ferrari it was aerodynamics, and here I've learnt what can be wrong."