Fisichella Disappointed after Early Exit

Italian Giancarlo Fisichella endured another disappointing race at Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, his final one with the Jordan team.

Roman Fisichella, who will drive for the Sauber team next season, retired on lap 34 when his Ford-powered car simply stopped.

"The car just cut out, it seemed to be a fuel problem," said Fisichella. "It wasn't going too badly before that, in fact I was having quite a good race as the car balance was quite reasonable. Unfortunately it was my last race with Jordan and we didn't get to the end so I'm a bit disappointed, but that's life.

"I'd like to say thank you very much to the team and I wish every one of them all the best and I hope we both have better seasons next year."

Jordan completed a disappointing season with a poor result in today's race, with Briton Ralph Firman finishing down in 14th position. The rookie, whose future is still uncertain, is looking to stay with Jordan next year.

"That was an unfortunate end to the season," said Firman. "I had a fuel rig problem in the pit stop and a pick-up problem in the fuel tank, which meant in my second stint I had to carry a lot more fuel than planned.

"Nevertheless, the team have done a good job all year and I've really enjoyed working with them - hopefully I can look forward to a long future with them."