"we need to give Justin a fair opportunity"

By steve
September 9 2003

Jaguar Racing Managing Director, David Pitchforth recently commented on drivers for the 2004 season - admitting that the team hasn’t given Justin the opportunity to show his true potential. Obviously the team feels that Antonio had enough chances to prove himself.

Here’s what David Pitchforth had to say:

“Justin is doing a good job for us and we have another three races left with him before we need to make a decision for 2004. That said, we need to give him a trouble-free race package for a weekend - something we haven't done given his retirements from the German and Hungarian Grand Prix. Only then can Justin demonstrate his true potential. It is a buyers market right now and we are under no pressure to announce Mark's team-mate for next season. It is important to note that, unlike other teams, we changed our driver line-up mid-season and we need to give Justin a fair opportunity to demonstrate himself prior to any decisions being taken.

“On choosing a team-mate for Mark, we have many variables to consider and as we have said recently, drivers bringing finance is just one of several. It is a complex equation that involves looking at experience, the extent to which someone is a team player, adaptability to our growing company and suitability to the challenge that lies ahead of us amongst many other factors. Justin was made aware of this right from day one and both sides are clear and comfortable with the matter. Right now, however, we are all clearly focused on going to Monza and being competitive against our immediate competition."