Jordan defends team cuts

"I am a businessman and entrepreneur and the simple fact is that if you spend more than you have, then you go out of business," Jordan said in Barcelona. "What I have had to do has been very painful. I genuinely love some of the people we have had to let go but, to their credit, they saw that something had to be done. I have an obligation to make sure that Jordan stays in business and I will do it. There is a fighting spirit in this team and I hope that by the end of the year Jordan will be back with a vengeance."

One of the consequences of a leaner operation is that Jordan himself will be more hands-on commercially once again.

The redundancies include managing director Trevor Foster, finance director John Putt, engineering chief Tim Holloway and senior race engineer David Brown, and have affected almost every department within the company.

Jordan denied that the move is a pre-emptive strike in anticipation of having to pay for engines if, as is rumoured, Honda abandons its works involvement with the team.

"Everybody says that Honda is going to do a runner but I have no knowledge of that," Jordan said. "They are excellent people to work with and I have a contract with then until the end of next year."

What is believed to be a factor, however, is that some of Jordan's sponsorship income is performance-related and after the disappointing start to the season, the team has had to face an imminent shortfall. It has therefore taken measures to stop debt snowballing out of control.

Team sources pointed out that while a manufacturer engine deal is obviously preferable, Jordan in fact paid for its Mugen-Honda engines in 1998-9 when its sponsorship income was little more than a third of the current figure.