2001 French GP

Located in the centre of France, Circuit Nevers in Magny-Cours was formerly a Club Racing facility before being upgraded to Formula One standards to host its first Grand Prix in 1991. Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda driver, Heinz-Harald Frentzen took the team to victory at this circuit for the French Grand Prix in 1999.

Circuit Nevers has a very large pit and paddock area, with the increased space making the working environment much easier than at some of the other circuits on the seventeen race calendar. The track is considered technical with its combination of low speed hairpins, medium speed corners, long straights and fast chicanes and offers a few good overtaking opportunities with its high speed and flowing nature. The smooth surface allows cars to run with a low ride height which creates additional downforce, although the downside to this surface is its harsh effect on the rear tyres. The first two corners at the end of the main straight are very fast, with the first left hander taken almost flat out, followed quickly by a long and fast right hander where a good exit speed is crucial as this dictates a car's speed along the Golf straight up to the Adelaide hairpin. With hot temperatures further playing a part in tyre and driver performance, the Circuit Nevers provides a challenging and usually exciting race.

Circuit Nevers has a very large pit and paddock area, with the increased space making the working environment much easier than at some of the other circuits on the seventeen race calendar.

Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda got off to a productive start at Magny-Cours, Jarno Trulli and Heinz-Harald Frentzen setting ninth and 13th fastest times on the first day of practice for Sunday's French Grand Prix.

"The car was running very well," said Frentzen. "It was a good day's work for a Friday, and I'm quite happy with it. I did 45 laps, which was important for me because I hadn't been able to test here. I had a small problem with the brakes but we managed to work around that. There's a new exit to the pit lane, which makes the first corner quite a bit safer. This is the first time we have used it and it's a challenge to get through as quickly as possible because the exit is outside the pit lane speed limit and is effectively another corner."

A mixed morning for Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda as Jarno Trulli set fifth quickest time but various problems for Heinz-Harald Frentzen meant he could not improve on 11th fastest.

"I'm pretty happy about this morning," said Trulli. "Everything worked out very well; no problems with the car. We worked mainly on the qualifying set-up and I'm pleased with that because I have produced good lap times. I'm pretty confident for the afternoon. As usual, though, it will be difficult to get among the three top teams, but I will try hard. Overall, we have developed the car a lot during the last three races and it is doing a good job, particularly over the kerbs, which you need to attack here."

Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda were in top form for qualifying this afternoon when Jarno Trulli set fifth fastest time and Heinz-Harald Frentzen, despite a troubled morning, recorded seventh quickest time to give the team their best overall grid positions since Melbourne.

Trulli set his best time on his final flying lap, beating a Williams and a Ferrari. "I must say that Bridgestone brought very good tyres," said Trulli. "They are a major step forward in terms of performance, especially for the race. So, I think I can do a good job tomorrow. The balance of the car was perfect. We worked very well throughout the test and through practice here.

The morning warm-up for this afternoon's French Grand Prix was uneventful for Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda, Jarno Trulli, fifth fastest, completing more laps than anyone else. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was 13th quickest after a trouble-free run.

"Perfectly routine this morning," said Trevor Foster, Joint Managing Director, Jordan Grand Prix.

Jarno Trulli scored a fine fifth place for Benson and Hedges Jordan Honda, the team bringing a recent run of unreliability to an end when Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished eighth after losing time during a pit stop.

Trulli held sixth place in the early laps, regaining the position after his first pit stop on lap 25. The second and final stop on lap 47 was carried out with the same slick efficiency by the team, Jarno moving up to fifth when Juan Pablo Montoya dropped out of third position with engine trouble on lap 53.