Cosworth deal tabled for Jordan

"It's very simple," Lauda said. "Cosworth, because of the Arrows situation, made Jordan an offer of engines on a three-year contract. Now it's up to Eddie to decide between Honda and Cosworth."

Jordan had originally been thought to be close to a works Ford deal but Lauda stressed that there would be no direct works involvement and that the engines supplied would be a specification behind those used by Jaguar.

"The deal is between Jordan and Cosworth and if Eddie wants to dump his engine and go with Cosworth, that's up to him," Lauda said. "There is a contract the same as with Arrows, where the engine is called the Ford Cosworth. The same thing applies for Jordan. It's in the agreement."

Lauda explained that Jaguar's new specification engine ran on the dyno three days ahead of schedule. "That is already in progress," he said, "and this year's engine would then be available for whoever wants to have it."