Monteiro waits to give EJ15B belated debut.

With the debut of the new Toyota-powered Jordan EJ15B not taking place in Barcelona yesterday [Thursday] as planned, Tiago Monteiro will be hoping for more luck in the yellow machine today.

Technical issues saw car and driver sidelined for the entire day as, after just one short burst, an oil leak forced Monteiro back to the pits at the Circuit de Catalunya. The test team tried in vain to repair the failure at the circuit, but finally had to admit that it would be impossible to solve the problem without new parts from the team's Silverstone base. These were shipped to Montmelo overnight, leaving Monteiro hopeful of a longer run today.

"This type of problem happens all the time with a new car, they are just teething problems," the Portuguese driver insisted, "The test at Barcelona was organised precisely for this reason, to check that everything is in order to allow us to use the new car at Magny-Cours. We are now hoping to get some good running done here on Friday, in order to give to the EJ15B its first proper laps."

Monteiro's main focus will be to determine whether or not the new contender will be ready for introduction at the French Grand Prix, running throughout the morning session, before handing testing duties over to team-mate Narain Karthikeyan for the remainder of the day. Having run an interim car for the first part of the 2005 campaign, both drivers are eager to get their hands on what amounts to a new machine designed specifically to make the most of the 2005 regulations.

"I am impatient to test the new aerodynamic package, in which we have put great hope," Monteiro smiled, "It is very different from its predecessor and it should get a certain advantage compared to our direct competitors."

Jordan has estimated that the B-spec car could find as much as a second a lap over the interim car, which should allow the team to re-establish its early advantage over back of the grid rival Minardi.