The Jordan Honda partnership, announced in June 2000, commenced on the race track at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix. The first season together saw the pairing achieve eleven top six qualifying positions and nine point-scoring finishes.

2002 marks the second year of what is a long term partnership between the Silverstone based team and the Japanese engine manufacturer, with both sides aiming for World Championship success.

Honda’s brand new engine for 2002, the RA002E, is purpose designed and built by Honda at its Research and Development plant in Tochigi, Japan, and most of the maintenance and re-building work will be carried out at Honda Racing Development (HRD) - Honda’s UK Formula One base in Bracknell, Berkshire.

For more information visit www.hondaf1.com.

Honda's Racing Pedigree
Honda’s founder Soichiro Honda was a passionate motor sports enthusiast, and raced cars himself in the 1930s. Visiting the Isle of Man in June 1954 to see for himself what the motorcycling world regarded as the pinnacle of accomplishment, he asserted, "Since I was a child, I have dreamed of building an automobile with my own hands and having it dominate world motor racing competition."

He took part in motorsport not just through enthusiasm or even to promote sales. He believed racing exercised engineers’ minds and raised morale at Honda factories. Honda entered TT for the first time in 1959 and quickly gained respect for its challenging spirit and determination. In 1961 Honda took the first five places in both the 250cc and 125cc races.

Following a seven year absence, Honda returned to Grand Prix racing in 2000. The company boasts a distinguished pedigree in all forms of motorsport and it is often said that racing is in Honda’s DNA.

Honda entered its first Grand Prix, alongside Ferrari, Brabham, Lotus and BRM, with a complete car in 1964, just three years after the production of its first 4-wheeled production vehicles. In October 1965, at only its eleventh ever Grand Prix race, Honda claimed its first GP victory in Mexico with Richie Ginther at the wheel of the RA272.

By 1968, Honda had recorded two Grand Prix victories, and had also starred in the F2 championship in which Jack Brabham claimed 11 consecutive victories in 1966. But despite being unable to fulfil Soichiro Honda’s dream of winning the F1 world championship, the company announced a ’temporary withdrawal’ from the sport.

Honda’s return to Formula 1 in the 1980’s followed a run of success in Formula 2, which began in 1981 when the Ralt-Honda took the Formula 2 championship in Europe in only Honda’s second season following its return to the category.

The second generation of Honda’s F1 participation began with Stefan Johansson in the Spirit-Honda at the 1983 British Grand Prix, but engine supply soon switched to the Williams team. In the course of the next nine seasons, Honda was to record a further 69 Formula One victories.

Two successes were gained with Honda engines in Lotus cars, and Honda engines in Williams cars won 23 Grands Prix, a Drivers’ World Championship and two Constructors’ World Championships between 1984 and 1987.

From 1988 to 1992 Honda supplied engines to McLaren, winning 44 Grands Prix and the Constructors’ and Drivers’ titles four years in succession, a run of success unprecedented in modern motor racing. To add to the titles, the McLaren-Honda MP4/4 dominated the 1988 season winning 15 out of 16 races, a feat unlikely ever to be repeated.

The decision to withdraw from Grand Prix racing at the end of 1992 was taken in light of the company having achieved all the targets that had been set for the programme, but within eight years, the challenge of Formula One proved too great for Honda to resist.

Honda’s third generation has brought new challenges and new relationships with new teams. No longer just an engine supplier, Honda engineers also began working on chassis technology with British American Racing as Honda returned to F1 racing in 2000.

The objectives of Honda’s new venture into F1 were clearly set out to develop the skills of young engineers, to develop new technologies and once again power a Constructors’ World Champion.

In 2001, Honda extended its Formula One commitment to develop a ‘works’ relationship with Jordan Grand Prix, for a two-team assault on the World Championship, which it continues to build on in 2002.