Gilles Villeneuve

There's no doubt that his famous victory in the 1981 Monaco GP plays a big part in the Gilles Villeneuve legend.<br>The Canadian managed to qualify on the front row and then win the most prestigious race of the year in a cumbersome Ferrari equipped with a brutal turbo engine that was still in the early stages of its development. It was hardly the ideal tool with which to thread the needle around ...

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Saturday May 8th, 1982. Just a few minutes remained of the final qualifying session for the following day’s Belgian GP, and for those drivers hoping to improve their grid positions, it was now or never.<br>Gilles Villeneuve never, ever gave up such hopes. Despite the fact that his second and final set of sticky qualifying tyres had run several laps, and were thus well past their best, he was ...

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Rosberg labelled Verstappen "the best driver out there" last month - but caused a stir after the Belgian Grand Prix when he suggested on his YouTube channel that Verstappen had been too aggressive on the opening lap and back to his "old self".<br>Those comments have not gone down well with Verstappen though, and the Red Bull driver said said that Rosberg appeared to have adopted the tactic of ...

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Villeneuve told Belgian channel RTBF, in the wake of Anthoine Hubert's fatal crash in the Spa F2 race, that he believed the increased use of simulators had left young drivers fearless about the consequences of accidents.<br>"Instead of letting the young drivers test, they sit for a week in the race simulator," said Villeneuve. "When they get to the racetrack, they behave as if they're still in the ...

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Kvyat had driven for the main Red Bull team back in 2015 and 2016, but was demoted to the sister Toro Rosso outfit to make way for Max Verstappen, before being dropped altogether a year later.<br>But the Russian was brought back into the Toro Rosso fold this year after a stint as Ferrari’s simulator driver, and scored a shock German Grand Prix podium that Red Bull’s motorsport advisor Helmut ...

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The five-second penalty awarded to Vettel for the way he rejoined the circuit after an off while trying to stay ahead Lewis Hamilton has proved intensely controversial, incensing the German and evoking a strong reaction from his fellow racers on social media.<br>For Villeneuve, the key distinction in the incident was that Vettel's transgression was not an intentional move made during ...

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Former world champion Villeneuve stresses that Leclerc was ready to graduate for a top team after his single season with Sauber, but says that his presence has unbalanced Ferrari and unsettled Vettel.<br>"If you listen to any fan or go on the forums, even the qualifying accident [in Baku], Leclerc doesn't get criticised," Villeneuve told Motorsport.com, referring to the Monegasque's crash during ...

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Ocon received a 10-second stop-and-go penalty after the clash at the Senna S with Verstappen while he was trying to unlap himself from the race leader. Villeneuve also cited past incidents involving the Force India driver, and suggested that he lacks racecraft. “Ocon is an embarrassment,” he told Motorsport.com. “That was ridiculous. And the worst bit is everyone has seen what ...

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Williams has scored four points in 2018, all from Lance Stroll's eighth place finish in Azerbaijan, as it has struggled with an aerodynamic stall at the rear of its FW41 that is causing high-speed turn-in instability.Its rookie Sergey Sirotkin is the only driver yet to score a point in 2018 and last weekend Williams had to start both cars from the pitlane after abandoning a new rear ...

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Raikkonen received a 10-second penalty at Silverstone after tapping Hamilton into a spin at the start, while Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel was given a five-second punishment for colliding with Bottas at the start of the French GP.Villeneuve believes Raikkonen’s penalty highlights the inconsistency of officials in Formula 1, and he thinks the Finn would have received a smaller ...

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In 1978, Gilles Villeneuve, Jacques’ father, drove this very car to victory in the maiden Canadian Grand Prix to be held on the newly constructed Ile Notre-Dame circuit in Montréal. That was Gilles Villeneuve’s first of his six victories in F1.The car was then sold to Pink Floyd’s drummer Nick Mason. Unfortunately, the car was crashed during a demo (Mason was not driving it), but it ...

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The Ferrari 312 T3, which the 1997 world champion has driven once before at the 2004 Goodwood Festival of Speed, will sit in front of the F1 grid before Sunday's race, where the ever-present 'Salut Gilles' wording at the start finish line has been altered to include '40 ans' for this weekend.When the drivers' parade begins, Villeneuve will lead the field of Austin Healeys carrying the ...

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Through the best images of sports photographer Bernard Brault, the book takes the reader back to the first edition of the race held in October 1978 that saw local hero, Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve win his maiden Formula 1 race in front of his fans.Each chapter covers a specific era and is illustrated by some 30 stupendous photos, for a grand total of 300. Reading the book takes ...

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Villeneuve recently suggested Robert Kubica might use his role as development driver to make the car more difficult to drive and compromise the performances of Stroll and teammate Sergey Sirotkin.Stroll, who has often been criticised by Villeneuve during his 12 months in F1, shrugged off the former champion's comments when they were put to him and explained ...

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Ferrari lost one legend after the 1977 season when Niki Lauda left for Brabham, but gained a new one for the following year in Gilles Villeneuve.Driving the Ferrari 312T3, Villeneuve won his first grand prix on home soil in Canada and went on to become arguably the most famous driver in the marque’s history.Ranged against an army of Cosworth V8s, and BRM and Matra V12s, Ferrari's ...

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The Williams driver was running 14th but ultimately finished 16th in the Brazilian Grand Prix after picking up a flat spot that caused his left-front tyre to delaminate and forced an extra pitstop.Teammate Felipe Massa, who is retiring at the end of the season, finished sixth on home soil to move back ahead of Stroll and into 10th in the drivers' championship with one race to go."It ...

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Bottas claimed his third pole of the season but was passed by Vettel on the opening lap and failed to reclaim the position.He crossed the line 2.7 seconds adrift of Vettel but only 2.7s ahead of Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, who started from the pits."It was a great drive from Vettel, he won it at the start," Villeneuve told Motorsport.com. "He was aggressive."When you see what ...

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On February 21, 1977, Gilles Villeneuve signed a contract with McLaren while pursuing his career in North America, competing in the Formula Atlantic series against the likes of Keke Rosberg, Bobby Rahal, Bill Brack and F1 racers such as Didier Pironi, Jacques Laffite and Patrick Depailler.The contract mentioned, “McLaren wants to enter the services of the Driver [Gilles Villeneuve] to ...

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The Canadian, who won his sole title 20 years ago, says that Hamilton relaxed too much when Valtteri Bottas arrived as replacement for his previous title rival Nico Rosberg.Rosberg beat Hamilton to the title last year before retiring from the sport."Lewis is really, really good," said Villeneuve. "He's only ever been in the best team with the best car, or close to it, like every ...

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And the season concluded with one of the most memorable and controversial finales in F1 history at Jerez. In the end it was Villeneuve who claimed his maiden crown and the last for Williams.The Canadian became a victim of one of Schumacher's dirty tactics, but manager to steer clear and secure enough points to clinch the title. 

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That day, Michael Schumacher ended up in the gravel after a clumsy blocking move on Villeneuve backfired, leaving the Canadian free and clear to secure the title. Three years after his clash with Damon Hill in Adelaide, Schumacher was again under fire from all sides.What is less well known is what happened later that evening – and how Schumacher attempted to smooth the waters with the ...

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That day Michael Schumacher ended up in the gravel after a clumsy blocking move on Villeneuve backfired, leaving the Canadian free and clear to secure the title. Three years after his clash with Damon Hill in Adelaide, Schumacher was again under fire from all sides.What is less well known is what happened later that evening – and how Michael attempted to smooth the waters with the new ...

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