Jacques Villeneuve is a Canadian former racing driver, known for his successful career in Formula 1, where he competed from 1996 to 2006. His biggest achievement was winning the 1997 Drivers’ Championship with Williams.
| Nationality | Canadian |
|---|---|
| Born | Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve April 9, 1971 Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada |
Villeneuve comes from a racing family; he is the son of former F1 driver Gilles Villeneuve and the nephew of racing driver Jacques-Joseph Villeneuve. His racing career began at the age of 17, when he competed under an Andorran license in Italy, progressing to Italian Formula Three by the following year. He advanced to the Toyota Atlantic Championship, participating in one race in 1992 and finishing third overall in the 1993 season. Villeneuve’s career gained momentum in 1994 when he joined Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) with Forsythe/Green Racing, where he won one race, finished sixth in the Drivers’ Championship, and earned both Rookie of the Year and Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year honours. In 1995, now racing with the renamed Team Green, he secured four victories, including the Indianapolis 500, and won the IndyCar Drivers’ Championship.
Villeneuve moved to Formula One in 1996 with Williams, where he made an immediate impact by securing four Grand Prix victories and finishing as the runner-up in the 1996 Drivers’ Championship during his rookie season, narrowly losing to teammate Damon Hill. In 1997, his main rival for the title was Ferrari’s Michael Schumacher. Villeneuve clinched the championship in dramatic fashion after a controversial collision with Schumacher at the season-ending 1997 European Grand Prix. With seven Grand Prix victories that season, he became the first Canadian to win the World Drivers’ Championship.
In 1998, Villeneuve finished fifth in the standings with two podiums, contributing to Williams’ third-place finish in the 1998 Constructors’ Championship. His performance dipped after moving to British American Racing (BAR) in 1999, though he managed to finish seventh in both the 2000 and 2001 seasons, achieving two podiums in 2001 and outscoring teammates Ricardo Zonta and Olivier Panis. Villeneuve continued to race in Formula One until 2006, competing for BAR, Renault, Sauber, and BMW Sauber, though he failed to replicate his earlier successes.
After leaving Formula One midway through the 2006 season, Villeneuve moved into other motorsport series, including sports car racing, NASCAR, and touring car racing. Although he didn’t achieve the same level of success, he did win the 2008 1000 km of Spa while driving for Peugeot. In recognition of his contributions to motorsport, Villeneuve was named an Officer of the National Order of Quebec in 1998. He has also been honoured with the Lou Marsh Trophy and the Lionel Conacher Award in both 1995 and 1997. Villeneuve is an inductee of the Canadian Motor Sports Hall of Fame, Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, and the FIA Hall of Fame.
Jacques Villeneuve Formula One World Championship career
| F1 Career | 1996–2006 |
|---|---|
| Teams | Williams, BAR, Renault, Sauber, BMW Sauber |
| Engines | Renault, Mecachrome, Supertec, Honda, Petronas, BMW |
| Entries | 165 (163 starts) |
| Championships | 1 (1997) |
| Wins | 11 |
| Podiums | 23 |
| Career points | 235 |
| Pole positions | 13 |
| Fastest laps | 9 |
| First entry | 1996 Australian Grand Prix |
| First win | 1996 European Grand Prix |
| Last win | 1997 Luxembourg Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 2006 German Grand Prix |
Jacques Villeneuve Teammates
| 10 Teammates | Involvement | First Year | Last Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damon Hill | 16 | 1996 | |
| Heinz-Harald Frentzen | 33 | 1997 | 1998 |
| Ricardo Zonta | 30 | 1999 | 2000 |
| Mika Salo | 3 | 1999 | |
| Olivier Panis | 34 | 2001 | 2002 |
| Jenson Button | 15 | 2003 | |
| Fernando Alonso | 3 | 2004 | |
| Felipe Massa | 19 | 2005 | |
| Nick Heidfeld | 12 | 2006 | |
| Robert Kubica | 12 | 2006 |
Race Wins
| Win Number | Grand Prix |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1996 European Grand Prix |
| 2 | 1996 British Grand Prix |
| 3 | 1996 Hungarian Grand Prix |
| 4 | 1996 Portuguese Grand Prix |
| 5 | 1997 Brazilian Grand Prix |
| 6 | 1997 Argentine Grand Prix |
| 7 | 1997 Spanish Grand Prix |
| 8 | 1997 British Grand Prix |
| 9 | 1997 Hungarian Grand Prix |
| 10 | 1997 Austrian Grand Prix |
| 11 | 1997 Luxembourg Grand Prix |
Complete Formula One results
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Rothmans Williams Renault | Williams FW18 | Renault RS8 3.0 V10 | AUS 2 | BRA Ret | ARG 2 | EUR 1 | SMR 11 † | MON Ret | ESP 3 | CAN 2 | FRA 2 | GBR 1 | GER 3 | HUN 1 | BEL 2 | ITA 7 | POR 1 | JPN Ret | 2nd | 78 | |||
| 1997 | Rothmans Williams Renault | Williams FW19 | Renault RS9 3.0 V10 | AUS Ret | BRA 1 | ARG 1 | SMR Ret | MON Ret | ESP 1 | CAN Ret | FRA 4 | GBR 1 | GER Ret | HUN 1 | BEL 5 | ITA 5 | AUT 1 | LUX 1 | JPN DSQ | EUR 3 | 1st | 81 | ||
| 1998 | Winfield Williams | Williams FW20 | Mecachrome GC37-01 V10 | AUS 5 | BRA 7 | ARG Ret | SMR 4 | ESP 6 | MON 5 | CAN 10 | FRA 4 | GBR 7 | AUT 6 | GER 3 | HUN 3 | BEL Ret | ITA Ret | LUX 8 | JPN 6 | 5th | 21 | |||
| 1999 | British American Racing | BAR 01 | Supertec FB01 3.0 V10 | AUS Ret | BRA Ret | SMR Ret | MON Ret | ESP Ret | CAN Ret | FRA Ret | GBR Ret | AUT Ret | GER Ret | HUN Ret | BEL 15 | ITA 8 | EUR 10 † | MAL Ret | JPN 9 | NC | 0 | |||
| 2000 | Lucky Strike Reynard BAR Honda | BAR 002 | Honda RA000E 3.0 V10 | AUS 4 | BRA Ret | SMR 5 | GBR 16 † | ESP Ret | EUR Ret | MON 7 | CAN 15 † | FRA 4 | AUT 4 | GER 8 | HUN 12 | BEL 7 | ITA Ret | USA 4 | JPN 6 | MAL 5 | 7th | 17 | ||
| 2001 | Lucky Strike BAR Honda | BAR 003 | Honda RA001E 3.0 V10 | AUS Ret | MAL Ret | BRA 7 | SMR Ret | ESP 3 | AUT 8 | MON 4 | CAN Ret | EUR 9 | FRA Ret | GBR 8 | GER 3 | HUN 9 | BEL 8 | ITA 6 | USA Ret | JPN 10 | 7th | 12 | ||
| 2002 | Lucky Strike BAR Honda | BAR 004 | Honda RA002E 3.0 V10 | AUS Ret | MAL 8 | BRA 10 † | SMR 7 | ESP 7 | AUT 10 † | MON Ret | CAN Ret | EUR 12 | GBR 4 | FRA Ret | GER Ret | HUN Ret | BEL 8 | ITA 9 | USA 6 | JPN Ret | 12th | 4 | ||
| 2003 | Lucky Strike BAR Honda | BAR 005 | Honda RA003E 3.0 V10 | AUS 9 | MAL DNS | BRA 6 | SMR Ret | ESP Ret | AUT 12 | MON Ret | CAN Ret | EUR Ret | FRA 9 | GBR 10 | GER 9 | HUN Ret | ITA 6 | USA Ret | JPN | 16th | 6 | |||
| 2004 | Mild Seven Renault F1 Team | Renault R24 | Renault RS24 3.0 V10 | AUS | MAL | BHR | SMR | ESP | MON | EUR | CAN | USA | FRA | GBR | GER | HUN | BEL | ITA | CHN 11 | JPN 10 | BRA 10 | 21st | 0 | |
| 2005 | Sauber Petronas | Sauber C24 | Petronas 05A 3.0 V10 | AUS 13 | MAL Ret | BHR 11 † | SMR 4 | ESP Ret | MON 11 | EUR 13 | CAN 9 | USA DNS | FRA 8 | GBR 14 | GER 15 | HUN Ret | TUR 11 | ITA 11 | BEL 6 | BRA 12 | JPN 12 | CHN 10 | 14th | 9 |
| 2006 | BMW Sauber F1 Team | BMW Sauber F1.06 | BMW P86 2.4 V8 | BHR Ret | MAL 7 | AUS 6 | SMR 12 | EUR 8 | ESP 12 | MON 14 | GBR 8 | CAN Ret | USA Ret | FRA 11 | GER Ret | HUN | TUR | ITA | CHN | JPN | BRA | 15th | 7 |
Sources:
- Jacques Villeneuve. Wikipedia.com
