Eddie Jordan

About

Eddie Jordan

Having moved from Dublin to Jersey in 1970, Eddie Jordan had his first taste of motor sport when kart racing in Jersey.  He’d soon been bitten by the driving bug, and started a career which saw him win both karting and Formula Ford races.

After he’d won the Formula Atlantic Championship, Marlboro offered Jordan a long-term contract that enabled him to race in Formula 3 and Formula 2, a move which resulted in him testing a McLaren F1 car in 1979.  In addition to this, he competed in Le Mans in the Pink Floyd BMW car, and was part of the Porsche team during the World Sports Car Championship.

In 1980, following his retirement from racing, he made the decision to set up his own team, implementing his objective to give young drivers their first taste of success.  Some of his most famous recruits include Damon Hill and Ayrton Senna, who Jordan gave their first Formula 3 drives.

The Jordan team finished second in the 1983 British Championship while under the leadership of Martin Brundle, and went one better the following year with Johnny Herbert.  During 1988, 1989 and 1990, Jordan progressed to Formula 3000, and won races with Donnelly, Herbert and Irvine.  This culminated in him taking the 1989 championship with Jean Alesi.

Following this success, in 1990 he set up the Jordan Grand Prix team, and entered the F1 circuit.  During this decade, the Jordan team were the only F1 team to challenge the power of Ferrari, McLaren and Williams.

After many successful years, Jordan sold his Grand Prix team in 2005 and pursued a number of other business interests – as well as forming a rock band named The Robbers.

As well as being inducted into the Irish Motorsport Hall of Fame recently, Eddie has been awarded two prestigious awards in Ireland:  the James Joyce Award from the Literary and Historical Society of the University College Dublin and the Gold Medal of Honorary Patronage of the University Philosophical Society of Trinity College, Dublin to honour his contribution to motor racing and his charity work over the years.

Eddie was was part of the BBC F1 Commentary team and featured on BBC Top Gear.

Eddie was awarded an honorary OBE in recognition of his services to charity and motor racing.

Jordan uses his experience to delight and enthral audiences worldwide, and is a charismatic speaker.

Kruger Cowne Speaker Awards: Business Entrepreneur Speaker of the Year 2015, Motorsports Speaker of the Year 2014.

Photographs by Paul Williams under CC rights.