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F1: J. Villeneuve back at Renault

Interview

http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_192.jpg

http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_185.jpg

And racing for Sauber in 2005.
Im pretty excited to see the guy back racing in a good car, if for only 3 races. He's been quick in testing.
Will he do any damage? Is this good for F1 to bring back a retired ex-champ?

With Jacques back in the group, we can now say that we have 2 world champions driving. Him and Schumi.... This will surely increase my interrest to watch the final 3 races. I just hope he beats the BAR cars! I know he can if the car is good.

Will be interesting to see how he and Alonso do for the next three races. Trulli was bitching that he got an inferior car compared to Alonso. If JV thinks that, watch out. At least this gives a few more reasons to watch since Schumi has already locked up the WDC.

But next year in Sauber? That's the weird part. Its not like Sauber is setting the world on fire. He'd be better of in the Renault.

Don't you just love the drama in F1?

So gone are the rumors of him @ Williams? (Sorry if I am out of it)

Can't wait to watch the Shanghai GP. I was up there last week but couldn't stay to watch ... what a bummer. It will interesting to see the track and how Villeneuve performs.

Don't know if Villeneuve could go back to Williams or not, that would definitely be cool. I know they have Jenson Button signed, but they might still have the 2nd seat open for 2005, not sure. Williams seem to be half the team they used to be, its a shame. Its been years since they've been really competitive. Hope the Shanghai GP is a good one. :thumbsup:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Craven Morehead

But next year in Sauber? That's the weird part. Its not like Sauber is setting the world on fire. He'd be better of in the Renault.

No kidding. I'm not sure what he's thinking on that one. What will be REAL interesting to see is how many buy out offers Sauber gets if Jaques does real well in the next 3 races. I believe I read somewhere that he was very impressed with the facilities that Sauber had and expected next years car to be very impressive as it'll be designed against the data from their new wind tunnel.

I'm just really looking forward to watching him drive a competitive car again.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Craven Morehead

Don't you just love the drama in F1?

Yes....yes I do. :thumbsup:

Code:

P. No  Driver       Team - Engine   Tyres    Times      Ave/Gaps  Laps

 1. 35  DAVIDSON     BAR Honda         M   1'33"289  210.353 Km/h  22  

 2.  9  BUTTON       BAR Honda         M   1'34"174    + 0'00"885  19  

 3.  6  RAIKKONEN    McLaren Mercedes  M   1'34"289    + 0'01"000  16  

 4.  5  COULTHARD    McLaren Mercedes  M   1'34"362    + 0'01"073  15  

 5.  2  BARRICHELLO  Ferrari           B   1'34"448    + 0'01"159  21  

 6. 11  FISICHELLA   Sauber Petronas   B   1'34"680    + 0'01"391  23  

 7.  4  R.SCHUMACHER Williams BMW      M   1'34"714    + 0'01"425  23  

 8.  1  M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari           B   1'34"776    + 0'01"487  25  

 9. 16  ZONTA        Toyota            M   1'34"868    + 0'01"579  23  

10. 17  PANIS        Toyota            M   1'34"870    + 0'01"581  25  

11. 38  BRISCOE      Toyota            M   1'34"881    + 0'01"592  29  

12. 12  MASSA        Sauber Petronas   B   1'34"959    + 0'01"670  23  

13.  8  ALONSO       Renault           M   1'35"514    + 0'02"225  27  

14.  3  MONTOYA      Williams BMW      M   1'35"646    + 0'02"357  22  

15.  7  VILLENEUVE   Renault           M   1'35"851    + 0'02"562  25  

16. 14  WEBBER       Jaguar Cosworth   M   1'35"886    + 0'02"597  22  

17. 37  WIRDHEIM     Jaguar Cosworth   M   1'36"363    + 0'03"074  19  

18. 18  HEIDFELD     Jordan Ford       B   1'36"630    + 0'03"341  19  

19. 21  BAUMGARTNER  Minardi Cosworth  B   1'37"076    + 0'03"787  15  

20. 15  KLIEN        Jaguar Cosworth   M   1'37"111    + 0'03"822  25  

21. 20  BRUNI        Minardi Cosworth  B   1'37"431    + 0'04"142  19  

22. 19  GLOCK        Jordan Ford       B   1'37"728    + 0'04"439  15  

23. 40  LEINDERS     Minardi Cosworth  B   1'38"522    + 0'05"233  18  

24. 39  DOORNBOS     Jordan Ford       B   1'39"051    + 0'05"762  15

Villeneuve .3 sec behind his teammate, looking good. The fact that a non-runner like Davidson set the pace tells me that, barring rain, the times should come down drastically in Qualifying tomorrow.

Some JV comments from today, interesting how he mentions that he's been training since March - he must have known about this for a long time...:

Quote:

Jacques, what is the difference between driving the last race with the generation 03 car and being here with the Renault of 04. Is there a big difference?
JV: This is a beginning instead of an end, so that is already a lot more positive. I had been in a situation where it was a long tunnel and you didn’t see the light and it just seemed to get worse every day. There were a lot of other things going on that made it difficult, driving wasn’t the hard part it was everything else around it. Right now it’s like being in the first race in 1996.

(Jacques Schulz) Considering we have a situation that there are three cars for each team next year, now you are contracted to Sauber when you could have four or five different opportunities. Was it a wrong choice?
JV: It would purely depend on the budget and who the third driver would be.

(Luc Domenjoz – Le Matin) Driving a Sauber car that will probably not be able to win a Grand Prix, where you will find the motivation?
JV: I drove for five years in a bad situation and the motivation was there. I am sure that next year will be a very positive atmosphere and that is what will make the difference. Just see the step that BAR made this year, anything is possible. You never know what will happen. But I am not even thinking about next year right now, there is enough work to do in the next month. But I am happy about next year.

(Jacques Deschenaux) Jacques, what was your feeling to see BAR improving this year?
JV: It depends who I was thinking about. I was very happy to see Jenson doing well, I was happy for the guys who had been there for a long time, and a lot of the work we had done over the last five years and finally it was producing results and there was pride in that. Of course, there is also a little part of me that would be a little bit unhappy that it was someone else getting the points.

(Jacques Deschenaux) What was the reason for this extremely high improvement?
JV: It takes everything, you need the car, the engine, the tyres, the drivers, the team, and after the season Jenson did last year he was very comfortable this year and he could be aggressive from the start of the season and it all worked well.

(James Allen) Jacques, what was the overriding emotion for you, sitting outside Formula One for such a long time, leaving aside the whole BAR element, just not being in Formula One. And did you believe that you would get back here and you would work again in Formula One?
JV: What was great was I could watch a race from start to finish and not because my car had broken down! That was quite good! Did I think I could come back? Yeah, because I started training since March and when you train and don’t have a drive there is a big pain, so somewhere you have got to believe you are coming back.

(Dan Knutson – National Speed Sports News) Jacques, obviously you are looking forward to racing in all the races next year, but just from the North American perspective, you have a large amount of fans back in Montreal and Indianapolis. Are you looking forward to racing again in the US and Canadian Grands Prix next year in front of all those fans?
JV: It will be great. It is so far away right now, but there is always great memories of Indianapolis and Montreal is my home race.

(Luc Domenjoz) Now you are back, do you think you will be back for many years and will you use Sauber as a springboard to another team?
JV: I have never used one team against another. Some people say I signed too early and I could have raised my value by waiting but that it is not something I wanted to do, it’s not the right way to work, so that is not my thought process right now.

(Jacques Deschenaux - TSR) Jacques, when the deal between yourself and Renault was revealed it was almost the same time as the one with Sauber. What was the reaction of Peter Sauber when he was informed?
JV: He was aware of everything going on and he agreed to it. If not, I would not have done it.

Jacques, you tested at Silverstone, but tell us how your first day back in action in competition went?
JV: It feels like being back home. Good. The team is working well. They all made it very easy for me to come back and work, they made me comfortable, and it is a team with no pressure, no stress, and we can just get down to working. This morning was mainly getting used to layout, where the limit of the car is and covering the track at the same time so there was a lot to do and it seems to be going well.

You are quite close to Alonso, does that please you?
JV: Yeah, it is always good to be close to your team-mate, so that’s good. It took a while to get there, though, but I can use the benchmark from my team-mate and work from that.

Physically, how are you feeling? Things like your neck, you can’t really train for those sorts of g-forces can you?
JV: I have been training hard since March and it seems to be okay. We did 45 laps today, which is almost a race, and there is no problem.

FROM ALONSO, ON VILLENEUVE

(Andrea Cremonesi) And Fernando, how do you judge the performance of your new teammate today?
FA: I think Jacques did a good job today. The timed lap is very close to what I did today, so it means he could go well in the car. It should be difficult for him, it is only his second time in the car and even without that he’s performing well, so I am sure tomorrow he will do a good job and hopefully both Renaults are in the top of the cut.

Villeneuve qualifies in 13th for Chinese CP. Not so good, considering that his teammate qualified 6th. I'm glad ShoeMaker has to start from the back, although he'll probably win anyway. The Saubers are a surprise, especially Massa. What happened with Sato? He started out this year in very good aggresive form and able to run at the front, now he's midpack. Did somebody holler at him for being too aggressive?? Shame about him, I was hoping he might break through this year.

Code:

P. No  Driver       Team - Engine   Tyres    Times      Ave/Gaps  Laps

 1.  2  BARRICHELLO  Ferrari           B   1'34"012  208.735 Km/h   3  

 2.  6  RAIKKONEN    McLaren Mercedes  M   1'34"178    + 0'00"166   3  

 3.  9  BUTTON       BAR Honda         M   1'34"295    + 0'00"283   3  

 4. 12  MASSA        Sauber Petronas   B   1'34"759    + 0'00"747   3  

 5.  4  R.SCHUMACHER Williams BMW      M   1'34"891    + 0'00"879   3  

 6.  8  ALONSO       Renault           M   1'34"917    + 0'00"905   3  

 7. 11  FISICHELLA   Sauber Petronas   B   1'34"951    + 0'00"939   3  

 8. 17  PANIS        Toyota            M   1'34"975    + 0'00"963   3  

 9. 10  SATO         BAR Honda         M   1'34"993    + 0'00"981   3  

10.  5  COULTHARD    McLaren Mercedes  M   1'35"029    + 0'01"017   3  

11.  3  MONTOYA      Williams BMW      M   1'35"245    + 0'01"233   3  

12. 14  WEBBER       Jaguar Cosworth   M   1'35"286    + 0'01"274   3  

13.  7  VILLENEUVE   Renault           M   1'35"384    + 0'01"372   3  

14. 16  ZONTA        Toyota            M   1'35"410    + 0'01"398   3  

15. 18  HEIDFELD     Jordan Ford       B   1'36"507    + 0'02"495   3  

16. 15  KLIEN        Jaguar Cosworth   M   1'36"535    + 0'02"523   3  

17. 19  GLOCK        Jordan Ford       B   1'37"140    + 0'03"128   3  

18. 21  BAUMGARTNER  Minardi Cosworth  B   1'40"240    + 0'06"228   3  

19.  1  M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari           B   1'52"100    + 0'18"088   2  

20. 20  BRUNI        Minardi Cosworth  B   1'53"500    + 0'19"488   2

The new track looks amazing, but bland. I must say, the cockpit view as it comes in to the grandstand is pretty awesome.

I’m glad Shumi is starting all the way in the back. Hopefully he can repeat his performance at Monza. Make it that much more interesting.

Hahahahahah!!! TOO TRUE!! The sooner he retires, the better F1 racing will be. He's making a mockery of the sport. I mean, come on, 13-14 years in F1?? (And I still don't think he has as many Poles as Senna). 7 Championships and counting?? Ugh.

Well, to the first-ever 2004 Communist Grand Prix race results: Villeneuve comes home in 11th, nothing too special here, but credit for bringing the car home and finishing the race. I think we were all hoping for more from the 1997 World Champ in such a boring F1 season in general. Sato in 6th, woohoo! Both Saubers finished surprisingly well. Fisichella in a Renault next year could be the most interesting thing to happen in F1 in years. As for the track, it reminds me of a cross between Magny Cours & Silverstone, or even Bahrain on steroids. No really great racing action, but seeing ShoeMaker lose the rear of his car at 160mph was pretty gratifying, luckily there wasn't anything near him to hit. On to Suzuka, a track I like.

Code:

P. No  Driver       Team - Engine   Tyres   Gaps/Laps     Average  Stops

 1.  2  BARRICHELLO  Ferrari           B   1h29'12"420  205.313 Km/h   3  

 2.  9  BUTTON       BAR Honda         M   +  0'01"035  205.273 Km/h   2  

 3.  6  RAIKKONEN    McLaren Mercedes  M   +  0'01"469  205.257 Km/h   3  

 4.  8  ALONSO       Renault           M   +  0'32"510  204.074 Km/h   2  

 5.  3  MONTOYA      Williams BMW      M   +  0'45"193  203.594 Km/h   2  

 6. 10  SATO         BAR Honda         M   +  0'54"791  203.233 Km/h   2  

 7. 11  FISICHELLA   Sauber Petronas   B   +  1'05"464  202.832 Km/h   3  

 8. 12  MASSA        Sauber Petronas   B   +  1'20"080  202.287 Km/h   3  

 9.  5  COULTHARD    McLaren Mercedes  M   +  1'20"619  202.266 Km/h   3  

10. 14  WEBBER       Jaguar Cosworth   M      1 lap(s)                 2  

11.  7  VILLENEUVE   Renault           M      1 lap(s)                 2  

12.  1  M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari           B      1 lap(s)                 3  

13. 18  HEIDFELD     Jordan Ford       B      1 lap(s)                 2  

14. 17  PANIS        Toyota            M      1 lap(s)                 3  

15. 19  GLOCK        Jordan Ford       B      1 lap(s)                 2  

16. 21  BAUMGARTNER  Minardi Cosworth  B      3 lap(s)                 3  

17. 20  BRUNI        Minardi Cosworth  B     18 lap(s)                 2  

18.  4  R.SCHUMACHER Williams BMW      M     19 lap(s)                 3  

19. 16  ZONTA        Toyota            M     21 lap(s)                 3  

20. 15  KLIEN        Jaguar Cosworth   M     45 lap(s)                 1

The beginning - and pretty much the end - of the race...
http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_377.jpg

Villeneuve says, NO YUO!!!
http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_395.jpg

http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_396.jpg

Team ShoeMaker in action.
http://www.motorsport.com/photos/f1/...hi-tm-0354.jpg

http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_351.jpg

How's this work exactly???
http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_357.jpg

Champagne. Bad for the eyes.
http://www.motorsport.com/photos/f1/...hi-tm-0356.jpg

http://f1.racing-live.com/photos/200.../diapo_360.jpg

Some interesting follow-up comments from Mr. Villeneuve:

Quote:

Jacques, eleventh on your return to F1 isn't a spectacular result. How do you feel?
It was a tough race, but I'm pretty happy really. I made a good start, but it took me too long to get into the rhythm of things. I didn't warm the tyres enough before the start and that meant the grip wasn't there on the first laps. So I lost a lot of the positions I had gained.

You said you spent the race learning: what did you mean?
Exactly that! The first thing to get used to was how the race unfolded, the profile of the thing with the way the cars and tyres are now. Before, the race pace used to be fairly slow at the beginning and would then increases. Now, it is a lot faster from the very first lap - and that just caught me out. But by the second half of the race things were going much better and I was a lot more comfortable with my pace and could really begin to push. Also, as the race unfolded, I started getting an idea of some of the directions we can pursue with the set-up in Suzuka.

Do you feel ready for Suzuka now?
Definitely, yes. I learned a lot during the race and got much more familiar with the car. The car got a lot better as the track rubbered in and I could attack more, plus I had the chance to work with the traction control and differential settings during the race to improve the handling, adjusting the car as the conditions changed. Looking ahead to Suzuka, I am feeling good - I know the circuit well, and I don't think we will have any problems with our pace in qualifying or the race.

I happened to see Fernando Alonso stroll by a pub I was sitting in last week. This was in Lan Kwai Fong (a trendy nightspot) of Hong Kong, a few days after the Shanghai GP. I don't think anyone recognized him at the time. I was a bit too lazy to get off my bum and say hi to him.

He should've tried to beg his way back to Williams.. at least he'll have a good car. Sauber just doesnt have the resource to develope a good car that'll be good for the whole season.

JV is history as a winning driver. My bet is Sauber knows it but is looking to stay alive. By having a world champion on the team they will have a lot easier time getting sponsors.