Team: British American Racing
Nationality: Canadian
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| | Villeneuve |
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STATS
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Year
|
Rank
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Wins
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Poles
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Podium
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Best finish
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2002
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12
|
0
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0
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0
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4th, Britian
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Career
|
|
11
|
13
|
12
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1st, 11 Times
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2002 Recap
The Good: Despite another disappointing car and season, Jacques Villeneuve never gave up and drove as hard as ever. BAR's new boss -- David Richards -- and new technical director -- Geoff Willis -- started to turn the team around, but most of their efforts would not pay off until 2003.
Season Highlight: Villeneuve finished fourth in the British Grand Prix.
The Bad: The car was uncompetitive and so was the engine. Reliability issues kept Villeneuve out of the points. Although better than in past seasons, internal team politics didn't help matters: Villeneuve's close friend Craig Pollock was ousted from the team leader role before the season began. Villeneuve's attitude did not make him the most popular member on the team.
Season Lowlight: The whole season was pretty low. With the exception of BAR's disastrous maiden season in 1999 when the team did not score a single point, this was Villeneuve's worst F1 season. The 1999 and 2002 seasons are the only times when Villeneuve finished lower than eighth in the
points.
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| Jacques Villeneuve, left, hopes to improve his status in F1 with a solid season in 2003. |
Key Stat: Only two finishes in the points.
2003 Outlook
What needs to be done: Villeneuve himself has admitted he needs to have a strong season to make himself a viable driver that a top team will want to hire in 2004. The BAR 005 chassis is a big improvement over last year's model -- now Honda needs to do the same thing.
Prediction: Villeneuve is going to put in a gritty fight to insure that he beats his new teammate Jenson Button.
Your Take
Share your thoughts on Villeneuve's prospects for the 2003 season.
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