Jacques Villeneuve is known for not mincing his words: why he believes that F1 stars earn too little and what he doesn’t buy about Lewis Hamilton
The journey to the Formula 1 season opener in Australia was extremely difficult for ex-world champion Jacques Villeneuve: he was locked in the toilet at Milan’s Malpensa Airport and was only able to free himself after 30 minutes by kicking in the door – and a piece of the ceiling fell on his head…
Villeneuve took the incident with humor, even posted two photos of it on Instagram. A rare insight, so to speak, behind the scenes of all those who fly around the world with the glamorous Formula 1 entourage. When traveling, there are always a few pitfalls lurking – because even though he is a world champion himself, as an expert for various TV channels, Villeneuve does not fly to the races in a private jet like the big stars of the series.
The fact that Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are courted accordingly and now earn many times more than what he and his colleagues were able to bag during their active days does not bother Villeneuve, according to his own statement: “I won a world championship, so no, I’m definitely not jealous that both Lewis and Max are making so much money. They’ve worked hard for it,” the ex-champion tells yaysweepstakes.
For Villeneuve, the reasoning is a simple calculation: “I think we’re in an era where Formula 1 is worth ten times more than it was back then. So if you compare it to what Michael Schumacher and I earned in the ’90s, they’re not exactly getting paid well,” explains Villeneuve, thinking especially of his former Ferrari rival:
“Michael earned so much more, even after only one title [more]. But hey, he was great, he won everything.” That eventually earned the German the title of record world champion with seven world championship trophies – but in 2020, Hamilton drew level and this year he is poised to celebrate his eighth world championship triumph for the first time, also in a Ferrari, thus overtaking Schumacher.
Villeneuve on records: “Nobody wants to be beaten”
If it were up to Villeneuve, “Schumi” wouldn’t like it at all: “No, nobody who holds a record wants to be beaten. That’s part of it, otherwise you wouldn’t be an athlete,” the Canadian believes that records and numbers mean a lot more to drivers than they are willing to admit. This also applies to Hamilton, who has always been deliberately reserved about a possible eighth title.
But Villeneuve believes: “Every driver, myself included, has always said, ‘Oh, the number of victories doesn’t matter, nor do records.’ But that’s not true. You just say, ‘No, no, I’m not interested, I’m not looking at those numbers’. But of course you do,” the Canadian reveals: ‘It’s part of your ego, it’s part of why you’re a competitor in the first place. Because you want to win, you want to beat everyone and be the best.’
Villeneuve is convinced: ”You want the results, the victories, the world titles. You want the biggest salary. That’s how you rate yourself, it’s just super important.” Hamilton is no exception. Although the Brit is worth his money for Ferrari, as the 1997 world champion adds: “He is a brand, that is also his difference to most other drivers” – even compared to title defender Verstappen.
