Nigel Mansell has said Eddie Jordan and Damon Hill will be a genuine threat to Jacques Villeneuve and Michael Schumacher in this year's Formula One world championship.

The former champion was speaking at the London Boat Show.

"Eddie (Jordan) did brilliantly last year in developing the car, and with Damon on board it could make all the difference," Mansell said.

"Jordan has had a policy of bringing young drivers through as test drivers and that has been one of the reasons for the success."

Mansell is close to Jordan and nearly drove for the team last season.

"Eddie and his team are ready to win and I think that will happen this year. They are up there with the top teams and will be a major threat. They could put pressure on the others."

Mansell was involved in some of the toughest rivalries seen on the racetrack and thinks that the sport has suffered a bad spell lately.

"In racing there are cycles of good competition. When I was racing, there were people like Nelson Piquet, Keke Rosberg, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, so we had a really competitive period.

"In the last few years there has not been the real depth. But now there will be three world champions in competitive cars and that will make a difference.

"It will be a good year for Formula One. What it really needs is to have someone else win the world championship to make that depth even greater."

Mansell does not think that current champion Villeneuve will walk away with the title.

"It won't be easy for anybody this year. There are a few teams capable of causing an upset," he said.