Villeneuve speaks about Räikkönen, double points and Schumacher

In a long interview with Sky Sports, Jacques Villeneuve discussed several topics that marked the off-season. The Canal+ consultant, who will compete in the World Rallycross Championship this season, had the opportunity to speak about the driver duo at Ferrari and the rule of doubling points at the last race of the season.

On Ferrari, first of all, the Quebecer was asked the traditional question since the announcement of Kimi Räikkönen’s signing, regarding the Finnish driver’s ability to outperform Fernando Alonso: “It’s possible because last year, Alonso was no longer the ‘golden boy’ of Ferrari, the energy wasn’t good anymore. There were internal struggles, and that’s why they hired Kimi.”

« But if we remember, a few years back, it ended badly with Kimi too, so who knows what might happen. It’s very difficult to be part of this team. It’s very political, there are many demands, and when things don’t go well, they become very hard to manage, » he indicates, before adding: « But with the new rules, where drivers won’t have to be at the limit all the time, it won’t be too physical, it may suit Kimi. »

Doubling the points, a horrible idea

Among the major topics of the winter break, regulatory changes took the spotlight, and among them, the doubling of points has sparked passions. Jacques Villeneuve is not a staunch supporter of this evolution in the sporting regulations: « I think it’s a horrible idea. It shows that in Formula 1, currently, there is no longer a way to create interest. It’s completely artificial, just like the rules in general with DRS and everything else. »

« But at least, this rule with the points is the same for everyone. Everyone knows before the start of the season that at the end, there will be a race with double points, » he notes. « I’m not sure about the intended goal, except perhaps to appease the organizers of Abu Dhabi, who spend millions to have a race, trying to maintain interest until their own Grand Prix. »

The difficulties of Red Bull

Another important subject, the Jerez tests during which Red Bull struggled, unable to complete more than 21 laps in four days. However, for the 1997 world champion, this does not indicate the level the RB10 will show if the team manages to correct its flaws: « We don’t know at what level of competitiveness it will be, they were only able to do a few laps. So, it’s worse than not being competitive. They really need to fix this because otherwise, they won’t be able to finish the qualifying, for example. So they have to work on this car and once they have raced, we will really know if they are competitive or not. »

Regarding global changes, the Canadian does not fail to be critical, as usual, when the issue of managing driving style is addressed: « [The drivers] will probably have to adapt their style, but the problem with fuel limitation is that fuel economy will not be up to the driver, it will be entirely managed by software, and at a certain point on the straight, the engine will start to cut off and provide less power. So the driver has little to do with it. »

If the sound produced by the turbo V6s is different, for him the essential is elsewhere: « They don’t have as muscular or aggressive a noise. But in the end, fans want to see great races. Exciting, fun races. »

Shocked by Schumacher’s accident

Last topic discussed, the skiing accident of Michael Schumacher which left the German driver very seriously injured with head trauma and still today in a phase of awakening after nearly a month-long coma: « I was really shocked. The impact is more on his family, it’s really, really difficult for them because they are waiting and they have no idea what’s going to happen. It’s a terrible position. »

« It can happen to any of us, in any situation. We all live on the edge and that was certainly the case with Michael. That’s how we win championships. He raced motorcycles. He needed that adrenaline to boost him, and he needed to always surpass himself. »