Irvine Raises Doubts about Revised Jaguar

Eddie Irvine has raised doubts about Jaguar's revised R3 car ahead of a British Grand Prix on Sunday that could be crucial for his Formula One future.

The Northern Irishman drove 15 laps at the Barcelona circuit in Spain last Thursday and came away with reservations.

"I did 15 laps in the car and I wasn't very happy with it," he told reporters at a photographic exhibition on Tuesday. "We've seen the improvements in certain areas but we've seen other problems surface.

"The car had a lot more downforce but there's a couple of issues with it that needed sorting. I think they sorted some of them the next day. We'll see on Friday. It was quicker on the straights but that's not really what you're trying to achieve. It's one of the things.

"Round the corners, when I drove it, there were a couple of issues I wasn't very happy with and apparently they addressed some of that the next day. But I don't know. I wasn't there.

"We found a lot of downforce and a bit of handling, we probably didn't find all the handling we wanted. They worked on that on Friday and I don't know how far it got."

Irvine's lucrative contract with Jaguar ends this season and he has yet to discuss 2003, saying that money is unimportant but he needs to have a competitive car to continue. All eyes are on Jaguar, the Ford-owned team who have scored just three lucky points this season, to see whether the modified car being introduced at Silverstone this week shapes up.

Enthusiastic Spaniard

Spaniard Pedro de la Rosa also tested the new car last week and Irvine said his teammate was more enthusiastic about it than he was.

"I've been a lot more critical than Pedro's been, he thinks it's a lot better but that doesn't necessarily mean that I'll think it is. So until Friday and Saturday I won't know."

Irvine had said at the last race at Germany's Nurburgring that the difference between the Silverstone car and the sluggish R3 that began the season so disappointingly should be 'night and day'. He was confident that there was an improvement, but unsure about how much.

"This car for sure definitely seems a step in the right direction," he said. "We measured the downforce that we thought we'd get and we got it. So that normally generates (a faster) lap time if the handling doesn't deteriorate which I think from what we've heard it hasn't."

"It might take us a little bit longer to get the full potential of this package," Irvine added. "We've got to wait for Silverstone. At Barcelona there was work to be done."

The 36-year-old, now the oldest driver on the grid, reiterated that he would not remain in Formula One simply to 'tool around' at the back of the grid as he has been at times this season.

"If it's like the way it has been, I don't want to do it," he said. "If I drive this car and it turns me on, I'll continue. If it doesn't turn me on, I'll have to consider my options. I want to see what happens here first."

He summed up Jaguar's three seasons in Formula One succinctly: "First year we qualified well, we raced bad. Second year we qualified bad, we raced well. This year was the year we were going to do both.

"So far we've done both of the bad things. This (car) is the first step forward. Even if it's not as good as we were hoping, this is definitely the first step forward."