JULY 30, 2004

The real situation with Ryan Briscoe

It is entirely possible that Toyota test driver Ryan Briscoe might be seen driving a Jordan next year but there are not likely to be any decisions made until after the future of the team is confirmed by the rumoured new owners the Al-Maktoum Family from Dubai.

It is entirely possible that Toyota test driver Ryan Briscoe might be seen driving a Jordan next year but there are not likely to be any decisions made until after the future of the team is confirmed by the rumoured new owners the Al-Maktoum Family from Dubai. Toyota does want to place Briscoe next season but contrary to popular belief there are limits to the Toyota budget in F1 and we hear that Briscoe has been old that he has to raise the money to buy himself a drive. It is hoped that Toyota affiliates around the world, notably in Australia, will come to his assistance but we understand that a similar thing was tried last winter and was not successful. Briscoe is a big hope for the future and Toyota wants to keep hold of him and thus it is unlikely that anything has been agreed with Jordan because there is no indication as yet what will happen with the team in the future. It is however too late for an engine switch to be organised and we expect to see Jordan continuing its ongoing relationship with the Ford Motor Company which has one more year to run. After that we would expect to see Eddie looking for a deal which will be a little more competitive.