Eddie Jordan death: Former F1 team owner dies aged 76

Former F1 team owner Eddie Jordan has passed away at the age of 76 after a year-long battle with cancer.

Jordan revealed in December that he had experienced some “very dark days” after being diagnosed with “aggressive” bladder and prostate cancer last spring, which spread to his spine and pelvis.

The former F1 team owner and pundit, who ran the Jordan Grand Prix team from 1991 to 2005 and was a pundit on BBC’s coverage of Formula 1, spent the winter in Cape Town and insisted last month that his chemotherapy was in “good shape.”

Eddie Jordan has passed away at the age of 76 (Getty Images)

But a statement from his family announced the Irishman had passed away earlier on Thursday in South Africa. The statement 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."

Last month, speaking on talkSPORT about leading a consortium which had bought London Irish rugby club out of administration, Jordan became emotional as the conversation moved on to his round of chemotherapy.

"Sorry guys, just a small thing, thank you,” Jordan said. "I've just come out of getting chemotherapy and I'm not 100 per cent together here guys.

"I'm just not myself at this moment in time. I'm a little all over the place, so please forgive me. I just had a big deal of it [chemotherapy] yesterday so I’m sorry – I’m not quite myself.”

On his Formula For Success podcast with David Coulthard, where he revealed his diagnosis in December, Jordan said: “This is a little message to everybody listening to this, don’t waste or put it off. Go and get tested, because in life you have got chances. Go and do it.

“Don’t be stupid. Don’t be shy. Look after your body, guys.”

Jordan’s co-presenter on the BBC, Jake Humphrey, posted a heartfelt tribute on Thursday, saying on Twitter/X: Utterly devastated. EJ has left us. Formula One won’t see the likes of Eddie ever again where a guy with a love for racing can hustle his way into the sport and end up winning races.

“More important than race wins though, he won hearts. I will never forget how his face would always light up whenever he saw a Jordan GP jacket, flag or cap… as we travelled the world together years after the team had been sold.

Jordan ran the Jordan Grand Prix team in F1 from 1991 to 2005 (Getty Images)

“His incredible spirit and love of life lives on in me, and my children who were lucky enough to meet him and hear all about him. Eddie lit up a room whenever he entered it. That is a lesson for us all - be the light in the room.

“I was lucky enough to share one, final, cherished meal with him and his boys a few months ago. It was special. We talked about me doing one last interview with him. Sadly that will never happen. As I left his departing words were ‘I love you brother’. I love you. Brother. One of the 3 Amigos is gone. The world seems a little less bright this morning. Farewell friend. Play the spoons up there for me.”

Edmund Patrick Jordan was born in Dublin on 30 March 1948 to parents Eileen and Paddy. After briefly considering becoming a priest and resisting family pressure to enter dentistry, Jordan took up a six-week accountancy course at the College of Commerce in Dublin where he began work for the Bank of Ireland.

But in 1971, his attention turned to motor racing, and Jordan won the Irish Kart Championship before moving up to Formula Ford and then Formula Three. But after he failed to realise his dream as a driver he set up Eddie Jordan Racing in 1979, entering teams in British F3 – where he hired Martin Brundle and Johnny Herbert – and later Formula 3000.

Jordan (left) celebrates his team’s best F1 result - a one-two finish at the 1998 Belgian Grand Prix (Getty Images)

Brundle paid his own tribute on Thursday, saying: "I'm really sad to hear that Eddie has succumbed to his illness, this has taken him relatively quickly, he was such a character. We'll miss him a lot. I first raced for Eddie in F3 in 1983, we hardly had a pound between us, and somehow he hustled and got the car and everything together, and we had a great season, that sums him up.

“There are so many drivers that will want to thank him, Eddie Irvine, Jean Alesi, many of us... Eddie gave us a chance in junior racing and promoted us like crazy to get us F1 seats. I was lucky enough to drive for him in F1 itself with the Jordan team to close the circle, like Damon Hill, Ralf Schumacher, Giancarlo Fisichella and Heinz-Harald Frentzen, they were given a chance by Eddie due to his entrepreneurial spirit, and his racer's mentality, he was one of the biggest characters of F1, irrepressible.

“He came through the junior ranks, he was a driver himself, and then he had some teams in F3, he ended up in F1, he won races, it was such a strong character to have around, a great sense of humour, and then when he had something secret to tell you and he'd whisper it to you, we will remember him for that.

“The sport will be poorer without him, what he achieved, what he achieved, what he stood for and what a racer he was."

After his stint in junior racing, Jordan then founded his own F1 team, Jordan Grand Prix, in 1991 and gave seven-time F1 world champion Michael Schumacher his debut later that year. After one race, Schumacher moved to rivals Benetton, where the Germa would go on to win his first two titles.

Jordan (right) was later a popular pundit on BBC's coverage of Formula 1 alongside Jake Humphrey (left) and David Coulthard (centre) (Getty Images)

Jordan at Adrian Newey's unveiling at Aston Martin in September 2024 (Getty Images for Aston Martin)

Jordan’s best result in F1 came in 1998 with a one-two finish with Damon Hill and Ralf Schumacher at the Belgian Grand Prix, while a year later Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished third in the world championship – Jordan’s best individual driver finish.

Yet after losing an engine deal with Honda in 2002, the team struggled financially and Midland Group bought the team in 2005.

Overall, Jordan GP entered 250 races in F1, winning four grands prix.

Jordan then became a popular and visible figure for fans of F1 in the UK as a pundit on BBC’s coverage of the sport, alongside presenter Humphrey and former F1 driver Coulthard, and was much-loved for his flamboyant and direct punditry style.

In March 2012, Jordan received an OBE for services to charity and motor racing, and most recently, Jordan served as star designer Adrian Newey’s manager and negotiated his £20m-a-year move from Red Bull to Aston Martin. He also led a consortium that bought London Irish rugby club earlier this year.

Jordan is survived by his wife Marie, who he married in 1979, and four children: Zoe, Miki, Zak and Kyle.

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