Eddie Jordan, the last of the truly successful independent Formula 1 team owners and one of the most charismatic figures ever to grace grand prix racing, has died at the age of 76.
Jordan revealed in December 2024 that earlier in the year he had been diagnosed with cancer in the bladder and prostate, which spread to his spine and pelvis. He passed away on Thursday.
A statement from his family, as reported by the BBC, read: "It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Eddie Jordan OBE, the ex-Formula 1 team owner, TV pundit and entrepreneur.
"He passed away peacefully with family by his side in Cape Town in the early hours of 20 March 2025."
"Any reasonable person would have described his project as commercial suicide. But history suggests that progress is invariably made by unreasonable men, those who don’t accept conventional limitations. EJ was one such."
Read Mark Hughes' Eddie Jordan obituary at this link
‘EJ’ first became known in motorsport circles as a driver, starting out in karting in Ireland and moving into car racing in Formula Ford in 1974. He went on to race Formula 3 and Formula Atlantic machinery, briefly climbing as high as European F2 and testing a McLaren F1 car.
But while a capable driver, it soon became clear Jordan’s real talent was in running cars for others, with Eddie Jordan Racing quickly building a big reputation in junior single-seaters. Famously, the team ran Martin Brundle to second in the 1983 British F3 championship, narrowly missing out to West Surrey Racing’s Ayrton Senna. Eddie Jordan Racing went one better in 1987, running Johnny Herbert to the championship.
Jordan’s team also enjoyed success in International Formula 3000, which had replaced Formula 2 as the step below F1 in 1985. Jean Alesi won the F3000 title in 1989, further enhancing Jordan’s reputation for success with young drivers destined for great things.
It was inevitable Jordan would try to break into F1, joining the late-1980s/early-90s team owner ‘gold rush’ as grand prix racing grew rapidly. What set Jordan apart was that he proved he could walk the walk as well as he could talk the talk – and he was certainly a champion talker, as proved by his ability as a deal-maker extraordinaire. He also ran a very effective racing team, one that defied expectations time and again to become one of the most famous in the history in F1 and left an indelible mark on grand prix racing.
In 1991, with a car designed by Gary Anderson, now The Race’s technical expert, Jordan Grand Prix exceeded all realistic expectations by taking fifth in the constructors’ championship in its first season with the iconic Jordan 191 – the car in which Michael Schumacher made his grand prix debut. What followed was a difficult spell, with the switch to free but ineffective Yamaha engines in ’92 ensuring the team could carry on before it continued its rise through the 1990s.
In 1998, Jordan broke through as a winning team with Damon Hill leading home Ralf Schumacher for a Jordan 1-2. Two further victories, and an improbably run at the world championship, followed with Heinz-Harald Frentzen in 1999 before the team inevitably struggled to keep pace with the big-spending big beasts of F1.
"When he asked me to design his first Formula 1 car in late-1989, I thought he was mad and said no."
Eddie Jordan as remembered by his tech chief Gary Anderson
Another win followed at Interlagos in 2003, the result of an inspired pitstop strategy aimed at ensuring Giancarlo Fisichella was in a good position at the point where the race could be stopped and not resumed, but the team’s fortunes had waned.
Jordan sold the team ahead of the 2005 season, continuing under the same name that year before becoming Midland the following year. After spells as Spyker, Force India and Racing Point, the team turned into the current Aston Martin squad in 2021.
He remained a high-profile figure in and around F1 with his TV appearances and in 2023 had launched his own ‘Formula For Success’ podcast with David Coulthard.
Statement from F1's Stefano Domenicali
"We are deeply saddened to hear about the sudden loss of Eddie Jordan.
"With his inexhaustible energy he always knew how to make people smile, remaining genuine and brilliant at all times.
"Eddie has been a protagonist of an era of F1 and he will be deeply missed.
"In this moment of sorrow, my thoughts and those of the entire Formula 1 family are with his family and loved ones."
