By steve
May 7 2003

Although getting rid of Pizzonia has been widely regarded as a good idea, many of those “in the know” feel that he should be given more time. Included in the list of those that think he should be given more of a chance are Former World champions and Team Principals Jackie Stewart and Niki Lauda. "I don't think his credentials are wrong for the longer term," Stewart said, "He is a very experienced driver.
"He is very skilled and talented, with a lot of natural ability. Although coming in to F1 this season, with the new rules, has made things tougher, there are some more experienced drivers struggling with the new one-lap qualifying system. The rest of his driving skills are very high."

Lauda, who signed Pizzonia to partner Mark Webber at Jaguar, had the following to say: "He is a young driver, and needs a lot of support. To sack him this early would not be the right thing to do. The team should wait and see if he can make it. “
"Last year, he was a quick as Juan Montoya and Ralf Schumacher (testing at Williams) and was a young and upcoming driver in F3000 in 2002. I'm not sure what has gone wrong, but I think the team should give him another chance."