Eddie want Jean to stay

The Frenchman made a shock announcement in a Bridgestone press conference today in Tokyo. He refused to talk about his decision in any detail, only answering a question about his plans for next year with the words "I'm retiring, I will not race next year.
"For the moment it is not completely clear what I'm going to do. For sure I will not drive F1 any more."

His announcement came three hours after Jordan announced that they had chosen Japanese rookie Takuma Sato to race for the team next year. Alesi had said since he joined Jordan at the Hungarian Grand Prix that he would quit racing in Formula 1 if the team did not keep him on for next year. The chances of him driving for Arrows next year had already been dismissed.

His team boss Eddie Jordan and world champion Michael Schumacher were also at the Bridgestone press conference and were clearly surprised at Alesi's announcement.

Jordan has stated that he wants to keep the veteran at the team next year in some sort of role - but has not specified how. "With regards to Jean, he has been an inspiration to the team and it is our wish that he finds a role within Jordan for the future," said the Irishman. "We are currently working on defining this role and hope to announce it in due course."

Whether Alesi will want to stay at the team, maybe in some sort of driver training role, is open to question. Jordan has yet to speak to Alesi about his decision to sign Sato.