Like Father, Like Son

Jacques Villeneuve grew up watching his father, legendary Formula One driver Gilles Villeneuve, race.  Even before his father’s death in a qualifying session for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix, 11-year-old Jacques knew he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps.

In 1984, Villeneuve asked his mother, Joann, if he could race.  She promised she would allow him to drive a kart if he got good marks in math, one of his weakest subjects.  Villeneuve applied himself at school, and one year later, his mother fulfilled her promise and allowed him to drive a 100 cc kart in Imola, in north-central Italy.  The rest is history.

Making His Mark

Villeneuve’s first real impact on the racing world came while he was running the Japanese Formula Three Series in 1992. That year, Villeneuve won three races and placed second in the championship standings in only his first season.  Villeneuve joined the North American Toyota Atlantic Series in 1993 and took home seven pole positions and five wins in 15 races in a Forsythe-Green owned machine.

Following its success the previous year, Forsythe-Green took the next step and moved to the CART IndyCar World Series in 1994. Villeneuve earned Rookie of the Year honors that first year after placing second in the prestigious Indianapolis 500 and scoring his first Series victory at Road America, a road-course in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. 1995 proved to be an even better year for the young driver. En route to winning the Series Championship, he was victorious in four occasions including in the Indianapolis 500. He was also recognized as Canada’s Athlete of the Year.

Moving On

Villenueve opted to join the Formula 1 ranks in 1996, driving for Frank Williams. He achieved instant success in the F1 world when he took the pole position and finished second in his first race at Melbourne, Australia. He also turned heads by setting the record for most victories in a rookie season, with four.

Villeneuve’s second year in F1 was much like his first, except he added the coveted Formula One Series Championship to his racing resume.  He is one of only three racers ever to win a Formula One Championship, a CART World Championship and the Indianapolis 500.  He remained with Williams for the 1998 season and earned podium finishes in Germany and Hungary and finished fifth in the Drivers’ Championship standings.  He was also made an Officer of the National Order of Quebec that year.

In 1999, Villeneuve joined the newly-formed British American Racing team, where he remained until 2003.  He briefly joined Renault near the end of the 2004 season and then signed with Sauber in 2005.  Villeneuve accumulated 11 Grand Prix victories, 23 podium finishes and 13 pole positions in his F1 career.

The Future is Now

Villeneuve joined Bill Davis Racing in September, 2007 and competed in seven NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series events, starting as high as third in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He also spent time testing a Sprint Cup car with hopes of moving into NASCAR’s premiere series full time in 2008. Villeneuve had the opportunity to get behind the wheel of the No. 27 Toyota Camry on two occasions near the end of the season, making the show for both events and finishing as high as 21st after qualifying sixth at Talladega Superspeedway in October.

2008 will mark Villeneuve’s first year full-time competition in NASCAR. He will join veteran crew chief Richard “Slugger” Labbe and pilot the No. 27 XX Toyota Camry in the Sprint Cup Series for Team Renegade.