Are the team finally finding their form?

Irvine's third place was by far Jaguar's strongest showing of the year so far, in what may be his last year in the sport.

The result moves Jaguar up to sixth in the constructors' championship, leapfrogging them ahead of Jordan and BAR.

Niki Lauda and team have introduced a raft of changes to the troublesome R3 and it has become a gradually more competitive propostion since mid-season.

But are Jaguar any closer towards their aim of winning the world championship?

This debate is now closed

Jaguar will be competing with Ferrari in two seasons, especially if they keep Irvine who is an exceptional driver. I think many people dislike him because they feel he is arrogant but that should not cloud their judgement on whether he is a good driver. They should put all the drivers in the same car with the same specifications and see who wins. I doubt Irvine would be far away.
Andrew, UK

People are getting a little excited here. Put things in perspective. Jaguar have scored points three times this year. They have improved considerably, but they needed to. If you had asked the same question two weeks ago, the responses here would have been very different.

I wish Jaguar all the best and hope they do well. But they need to be better at setting up the car for all the races and not just a few. They also need to have a good driving team. Irvine is not going to be in F1 as a driver for too much longer!
Jimbo, UK

I'm not sure it really matters, as F1 is becoming so dull as a spectator sport, people are beginning to see through a highly contrived marketing ploy. Interesting contrast this weekend with the appalling coverage of another great race at Rockingham - sandwiched in between show-jumping and boxing! Come on Auntie - it was a great occasion that deserved better than a 20 minute slot on Sunday afternoon...
Simon F, Northumberland

I have followed Jaguar since the early 80s and watched them win Sportscar races week after week under the managment of Tom Walkinshaw. Now Tom is effectively unemployed. Bring him back to Jaguar, sign up Antony Davidson to partner Eddie and they will be winning races regularly in 2004.
Justin Stuart, England

With Lauda at the helm and Irvine at the wheel...forget it! With the faith of Ford, committed drivers and serious business minded management they might have a chance - one day.
Spanky, UK

No way! Their qualifying times are too inconsistent. One race we find the pair sitting nicely in the top ten, the next they are down in 17th or so!
Jacko, United Kingdom

Jaguar/Ford have the finances, technical background, heritage and personnel to be consistent winners. Just have to put them all together. An experienced driver like Irvine can be the number one asset for a team, when he pays more attention to driving than soundbites.

Consistency over the long haul is what counts: A lesson there for Montoya - a "one lap wonder," the best drag racer in F1.
Bob Bryan, USA

I seriously hope they do find some form (along with Toyota in a year or two). With those three and perhaps Williams and McLaren in there too it might produce more than a one horse or two horse race. This year it's really been Bore-mula One.
GMcD, Edinburgh

Yes, Jaguar are serious contenders in F1, but only for fifth and sixth place positions. I believe they can compete with McLaren and Renault, but they are a long way off Ferrari and Williams.

Maybe they can get to the top in three or four years as they have got a good team behind them. It would be nice to see a British team other than McLaren and Williams at the top, as it would be good for F1. Three teams have dominated F1 for far too long and a change would be very refreshing.
T. Warren, Notts, England

With all the hard work that has gone on behind the scenes with Jaguar and Eddie Irvine's tremendous technical input as a driver, the team can continue to build on this and become a really strong contender in F1. Well done everybody at Jaguar.
Trevor Alcock, UK

Jaguar have done an astounding job this year, but they've really done little more than turning the clock back on two years of going backwards. Getting lucky on one result, given three podium contenders retired and Coulthard basically putting himself out of contention at the start, doesn't actually mean much.

McClaren are still faster, and I'd rather back the Renaults to make fourth place in the constructors next year.
Jem, England

Jaguar is one of the most provocative names in motoring history and it's great to see them finally turning in some great results. With the financial might of Ford behind them there is no reason why they cannot become the best on the grid. I wouldn't be surprised to see an American driver behind the wheel in the next few seasons.
Graham Smith, UK

Ford will not allow Jaguar to do too badly. Ferrari have only won 11 constructors' championships since 1950 - including the past three years. Historically, they are a hit & miss team. I can also remember Williams used to dominate the 90's in the same way that Ferrari do now. There is no reason why Jaguar cannot get there in a few seasons.
David, Qatar

Formula One has to be the most boring sport ever, I used to love it, but year after year the excitement has faded and I am afraid it no longer exists...yawn!
Conrad Sharp, UK

They have the potential to do so and with Eddie Irvine at the wheel, who has always had the potential to be one of the best British drivers ever, I can really see them making a surprise blow to F1 in seasons to come!
Davey, Essex, England

Jaguar are the best placed team to try to take on Ferrari on the charisma stakes at least. They really need to sort their design team out, as we have seen with the Newey debacle. I would like to see them have Gustav Brunner as chief designer, and maybe Sam Michael of Williams as technical director. More importantly they must keep hold of Guenther Stiner.
Neil Greggor, UK

In a word, no!
Ian S, UK

Jaguar are becoming "best of the rest" which will likely motivate Ford to keep on investing. They must however keep Irvine, he has been tremendous throughout. Pedro however will likely not make the cut for next season.
Alan Kinsella, USA

Watch Jaguar surprise a few people next year. I hope Irvine stays - he is finally showing his true potential.
Thomas Morley, England

There are no serious contenders to Ferrari's titles! I mean Williams and McClaren are just a big joke!
P Roussev, USA

Jaguar winning the constructors' championship? Not yet...but they seem to heading in the right direction. They are following the footsteps of Renault. They were struggling last year; only to improve a lot this year. Jaguar could be a challenger by 2004 if they continue like this.
J George, U.A.E

I don't think they will be there with the likes of Ferrari, Williams and McClaren. They are certainly contenders for the fourth slot next year. Hats off to Jaguar for a wonderful performance in Monza. As for Irvine, looks like he will be around next year after all. I don't like his big mouth but congratulations to him for a job well done!
O Latuke, Canada

Jaguar have come a long way as far as their development is concerned but they still have a very long way to go. They must still sort out many problems they face including reliability factors that have plagued them during their time in F1.

With Eddie Irvine and Nikki Lauda in amongst their ranks, Jaguar have the potential to develop themselves into a strong team but it will undoubtedly take a little more time.
Alizay Hamid, Pakistan

How can Jaguar be serious contenders when their drivers don't seem to have the commitment or the passion to win? Eddie Irvine had the potential to be one of the world's best and should have won a lot more races than he has. Unfortunately, he seems to act like his career is over and he is literally coasting into pit's to retire from racing. But not until that last million is in the bank!
Mark Eldor, England