Malaysia: Villeneuve Looks Forward to Tour
By Jamie Makin
March 12 2005
Jacques Villeneuve is not known for his fondness for PR events, yet he is admittedly looking forward to joining the annual PETRONAS Malaysia PR tour prior to team's 'home' race at the Sepang Circuit the following weekend.
"It's a nice chance because normally at an event we spend most of our time at the race track and only get to go out and look around a place on the Sunday night," said the veteran racer. "Unfortunately I am allergic to spicy food so there are a lot of things I can't eat, but I'm really looking forward to the opportunity we have to spend more time in Kuala Lumpur in the week before the race."
Hopefully the tour will give Villeneuve time to regroup after a disappointing performance in Australia last weekend. He slipped from a 4th place start to a 13th place finish after struggling with the car's tyre selection. He has a lot of work ahead of him to set the car up for the demanding Sepang Circuit.
"Sepang is a good circuit but it’s very difficult. It’s got a lot of interesting corners, both high-speed and low-speed, and it’s quite a long lap," Villeneuve explained. "Malaysia is also very, very hard physically. This is the first hot race of the year and all of the winter testing is usually done in relatively low temperatures, so it’s quite a shock to the body."
There had been concerns over Villeneuve's fitness level after his return with the Renault team for the final three races of last season. He reported being fatigued at the end of those races but has worked hard over the winter break to catch up. After last weekend's race he said he had a lot more energy. Malaysia is the ultimate test of a driver's fitness and should cast aside any lingering doubts over Villeneuve's physical condition.
The race will also test the car's endurance as the team must use the same engine from the Australian Grand Prix. "It is also hard on the car, and cooling the engine and brakes is even more critical. Sepang is always a difficult race," the Canadian concluded.
Jacques Villeneuve - Results for Malaysian GP:
| YEAR | QUAL | RACE | COMMENTS |
| 2003 | 12 | DNF | Gearbox |
| 2002 | 13 | DNF | Rear Wing Failure |
| 2001 | 13 | 8 | - |
| 2000 | 7 | DNF | Spun Off |
| 1999 | 6 | 5 | - |