Jacques Villeneuve

Brazil, Argentina & San Marino Drivers Columns

The Brazilian Grand Prix
By Jacques Villeneuve

This weekend, I managed to be late for nearly everything. On Thursday I reached the racetrack 15 minutes after the FIA press conference had begun (I had taken a right turn instead of a left in the middle of Sao Paulo and we were totally lost in a city with more people than Canada). Not only is Sao Paulo enormous, it also suffers from permanent gridlock. Suffice to say that the Brazilian Grand Prix started off badly for me. I had to try and rescue the situation by putting on a good performance, but there too it seemed that I couldn't find the magic formula.

At least my disappearing act gave the journalists something to laugh about but the mood in the paddock was altogether more sober. The complaints made against the use of drivers' aids in the car proved to be the hot potato of the day. Even before the qualifying rounds, Formula One was again plunged into controversy and we all waited for clarification.

I was glad that some teams did raise objections to what I see as an unfair advantage. I have always been against drivers' aids but I find it difficult to work properly when the interpretation of rules can provoke such disagreements at crucial moments in our sport. It seems as though the new braking systems have been consigned to the bin for the moment but the decision did nothing to stop McLaren from dominating the start of the season. They have without doubt the most effective cars and maintain a clear lead over the other teams.

As to my car, the less said the better. I was not best pleased that my FW20 sounded like one of the new guitar pieces that I am learning and my times confirmed my unease. Rather than just tinkering with it (which might have gained me one or two tenths of a second advantage) we worked on several major tuning sessions throughout the weekend. But to no avail and I failed to improve my times.

It was while putting one of these plans into action during the last practice session on the Saturday morning that I lost control of my car, went through the gravel, hit the tyres and ended up with some fine tyre marks on my helmet. I wrecked the car but luckily I wasn't too shaken up. I did have some pain in my vertebrae and had to have a few sessions with the Winfield Williams team physio.

This weekend, it was Heinz-Harald Frentzen's turn to drive the spare car. Our cars are adjusted very differently and the team had only two hours to prepare before the qualifying round. The session did not go particularly well, tenth place on the grid was not what I wanted and again we had problems with the tuning.

The catch, if I may call it that, was that we only had time for a warm-up on the Sunday morning. The car was handling a lot more smoothly and I finally began to feel better. All too soon I felt as if I was driving on ice which slowed me down. We had tried more than once to make the rear of my FW20 more stable but only managed to destabilise the front of the car.

After all these setbacks, it was essential that I had a good start, passed as many cars as possible and above all avoided ending up off the track before I had completed my first lap. Straightaway I moved up two places but no further. Nevertheless, at the first corner I was up there with Michael Schumacher and Alexander Wurz. Remember last year I took a major gamble at the same spot, going off the track before rejoining it. I couldn't risk braking too hard and wasn't able to pass them. Unfortunately, Wurz who had made a better start, caused me to lose some time.

Coming out of my first pit stop I ran into heavy traffic. It was not an ideal position but I got some pleasure from passing three cars, although it was too late to catch up with the leaders by then. Things were further complicated by the need for two tyre changes caused by the problems with the rear of the car. It wasn't the best strategy but it would have been worse to end the race with bald tyres and be disqualified.

Once again, McLaren's superiority remains unshakeable. That is beyond doubt, even if I did fail to win a point in Brazil. After this weekend, we have to think positively if we are to progress. Any short term analysis would be disastrous but longer term the results are encouraging. We leave Sao Paulo with better knowledge of the car and we are catching up with McLaren. There is much work to be done but I'm not about to throw in the towel.

The Argentina Grand Prix 1998

By Jacques Villeneuve

Finally! An interesting race. Too bad that I didn't finish but I enjoyed driving and I really felt at one point that I was capable of third place. Unfortunately, after the first pit-stop, which took more than twelve seconds, my battle with David Coulthard was settled by my departure from the track and a fracture in my forward suspension. A slide in a corner caused me to slow down and David took advantage by overtaking on the outside on the following corner. He wasn't far enough in front of me at the bend and I could not avoid him. The McLarens beaten, the Ferraris competitive, and what, I hear you ask, of Williams?

Let me make one thing clear. If I thought for a moment that the Championship was beyond my grasp I wouldn't be here. I hope that statement conveys my real feelings; I race to win. In simple terms, we have to overcome some obstacles which so far this season have stood between us and better results. We must grit our teeth in the face of the challenge. Loss of confidence or criticism of the team will do nothing to help my performance. My team, Winfield Williams is fully aware of this. And for this reason we continue to work with a clear objective: winning more races.

Winning remains my number one priority. I had time to think long and hard about that after leaving the Brazilian Grand Prix behind. It was decided some time ago that I would not attend the tests in Barcelona between the Brazilian and Argentine races. My team decided that Heinz-Harald Frentzen should test the new tyres. If they had decided to concentrate on the set-up adjustments, I would have had to be there. Remember that we register all the data on the car in order to use it. The team had been through and analysed it and had come up with certain solutions to problems we had discovered in Brazil and Argentina.

While all this was going on I was recharging my batteries in the jungle. What a contrast! For a week the sound of animals replaced that of cars. I fished for piranha, walked for two days in the tropical rain forest, discovered many creatures and marvelled at the lushness of the vegetation. I could not have wished for a better place to relax and unwind.

After such a refreshing break, I threw myself back into the world of Formula One with new vigour. In Buenos Aires, several friends from Canada and Europe arrived to celebrate my birthday. In order not to disrupt the timetable that takes effect on Thursday of a race weekend, we all went out on the Wednesday evening for dinner at an excellent restaurant. The following day one of my sponsors presented me with a birthday cake, which I shared with the team. Though shared is not quite the right word as half the cake ended up on my head and the rest on top of my engineer, Jock Clear.

From the Friday it was back to serious matters. The afternoon session was cut short by damage to my gearbox. On Saturday my qualifying was not the best and set-up problems meant that I only managed to achieve seventh position on the grid. Fortunately, the car handled better during the race.

The new tyres, broader than before, undoubtedly helped Ferrari. Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine proved this conclusively during the race. The new Goodyears enabled them to correct their understeer by improving the grip at the front of the car, whereas we have been working at the opposite end since the beginning of the season.

Talking of tyres, I was surprised to see Alexander Wurz achieve some very fast times after forty laps with the same set. It seems the Bridgestones improve as the grooves disappear. This is something that we should examine and consider how best to react with Goodyear's help.

We return to Europe with a programme crammed with tests in our luggage. Understanding how best we can get the car to react under different set-ups will be the challenge of the next tests. Nevertheless, I believe what I say - that we are making progress. Thinking of how we can use the FW20 to its maximum capability from Imola will occupy my time from this week on.

The San Marino Grand Prix 1998

By Jacques Villeneuve


Only three points! Yes I know it's not that great. But to tell you the truth the result didn't reflect the enjoyment I experienced during this race. And I did enjoy myself; I did some nice power slides and pushed myself to the limit. I was fighting for third place right up to the last lap and felt that I gave it my best shot. To come fourth after a battle like that was a disappointment but we could have hardly done better faced with the superiority of McLaren and Ferrari. In spite of Mika Hakkinen dropping out, these two teams are in a class of their own. For us at Winfield Williams, Imola at least gave us a chance to understand better the handling of the FW20. The San Marino Grand Prix marked the end of a busy fortnight during which there was no time to relax.

After Argentina, I just had time to dump my bags in Monaco before heading off to Jerez for the tests. Following the poor progress we made in recent tests we decided to approach the problems from a different angle. The results were quite conclusive but we still have a lot of work to be done. However, the fact that we did make progress helps to maintain the morale and motivation of everyone in the team. But I'm not expecting miracles - I will have to be patient before being able to get behind the wheel of a more competitive car.

After Spain, I got some great fresh air on the ski slopes of Villars-sur-Ollon in Switzerland. I took part in a competition with some of the members of the Swiss national team. They were better than me, to be sure, but I think that if I put in some serious training next winter I'll be able to narrow the gap between us. Training for the slalom is actually quite useful for Formula One. This year it has increased my physical stamina and that was important at Imola where each lap in the race was like qualifying.

Before reaching Imola, I stopped in Paris for an advertising shoot that will soon be on French television. Next stop was Barcelona for promotional activities along with Michael Doohan, four-times World 500cc Motorcycle Champion, and World Rally Champion, Tommi Makinen. I was able to help Michael Doohan take his first steps in Formula One. His attempt was to be brief: on the fourth bend, he lost control of the FW19 and damaged the car. After I had given him some advice, he got behind the wheel again and I was impressed with his ease. Unfortunately I didn't get the chance to try out his bike, my contract forbids it and I am sure Frank Williams wasn't about to make an exception so close to the first practice sessions for the San Marino Grand Prix.

Arriving at Imola on the Thursday evening, we decided immediately to spend the weekend working out a new strategy to close the gap which has separated us from McLaren. In the three previous Grands Prix we spent too much time and energy trying all sorts of adjustments that proved useless. Knowing the car's limits, our task was to maximise its performance while taking these criteria into account. Do not assume that I am satisfied with a position behind McLaren and Ferrari, victory is possible but not as close as we would like.

Working on this basis, by the end of the practice sessions we had come close to the best set-up possible. During the qualifying rounds one more lap might have given me a place near the top three. I now had to make a good start and avoid being caught up at the first corner. I went off like a bullet but I had to be a little aggressive at the first braking point in order to come out ahead of the bunch. After Mika Hakkinen dropped out, I was in third place until the first pit stop. Unfortunately a problem with the valve in my tank cost me precious seconds and Eddie Irvine was able to pass me.

There ensued a battle between Eddie Irvine and myself for third place. Right on his heels before my second pit stop, he set off in front of me. I tried to make up the time. At the end of the race, rubber deposited on the track helped my rear-end grip and enabled me to do some very fast laps. I tried to keep at Eddie as much as possible in order to force him into making a mistake. If you compare Michael Schumacher's times with those of Eddie Irvine they reveal that Eddie still had a margin when I was really driving to the limit. A pity about third place but I at least gave it my all.

San Marino confirmed what we had established in Buenos Aires: Ferrari has a car almost as effective as McLaren. So, how can we catch these two up? We need a better overall package - and this could involve many different things, engine, chassis, and aerodynamics - to give us a more effective machine to challenge with. What we do know is that there is a lot of work to be done and we are as determined as ever. Without doubt, my fourth place and the fifth of my team-mate Heinz-Harald Frentzen has given us all hope and encouragement.

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