"Gilles was the last great driver. The rest of us are just a bunch of good professionals."
- Alain Prost, 1982
Born Joseph Gilles Henri Villeneuve on January 18, 1950. Fascinated with mechanical things at an early age, he reportedly wouldn't play with his toy trucks and cars unless they were very realistic. He grew up cycling and skating and playing hockey, but when his father let him drive the family VW van when Gilles was still but a child, the fever had struck him. His father bought an old beater of a van and let Gilles drive it around the fields near their home when Gilles was just 11 years old. Gilles somehow made himself a sort of go-cart from a conglomerate of lawnmower parts.
At age 15, Gilles was gripped with the need to drive so badly, he secretly made a copy of the keys to the family car, and sneaked out for a drive one rainy night. His joy-ride ended in a crash, totaling the family car and forcing Gilles to walk home. His parents were understandably none too pleased. That put an end to his driving until his 16th birthday when he obtained his drivers license. One night while on a trip to a nearby town to see a girl he was sweet on, Gilles got into a race with another car that ended when he ran into a herd of loose cows on the highway, he wound up in the hospital with 80 stiches in his head.
Undaunted by his collisions - this is Gilles Villenueve we're talking about after all - he soon bought himself a Czechoslovakian made Skoda, and was soon terrorizing the streets again, which led to many citations dutifully issued by the local gendarmes. He used the car to compete in slalom events organized on local parking lots.
When he was 17, after reading much on the subject of auto racing, he had an epiphany that it was possible to make a living doing what he loved best - drive very fast. To those ends, he purchased a Ford Mustang and after some modifications, started entering local drag races, but it wasn't enough of a thrill to keep him interested, so he tried some oval racing. That too did not sate his hunger for true thrills.
He longed to do the type of road racing he had read about in magazines, particularly Formula One, as he had spent many an hour reading about the likes of Amon and Clark, but he had no means to pursue that dream. However, there was a form of racing that he could pursue. Snowmobiling was soon to become a major pastime in the Great White North - what else is there to do when all that snow is on the ground, after all. And soon, Gilles had purchased his own snowmobile. These were still relatively new crafts, so it wasn't long before the manufacturers of them started organizing races for the folks who bought their product. Gilles entered them and was soon dominating.
When he was 18, a family friend purchased a snowmobile that was purposely built for racing, and gave it to Gilles to race. He won so much that by the next year, the Skiroule factory had signed him to race theirs. He soon became Quebec champion as well as Canadian champion, and even won the 440cc World title in New York state. But by this time Gilles was married and a father of two, and he needed a year round income, or at least a better one.
So in 1973, friends suggested he try his hand at auto racing and a friend suggested he attend the Jim Russel driving school in order to pursue a career on four wheels. Gilles excelled at the school, feeling totaly at ease in the cars and impressing his instuctors.
"Right away I could see he was one of the rare ones, he settled right down in one of the school's racing cars and set out to go faster than anyone we had ever seen before."
The chief instructor of the "Jim Russell race driving School", talking about student G. Villeneuve - 1973
He soon earned his competition license. This led to him purchasing a 2 year old Formula Ford car, in which he won his 2nd time out. He would go on to not only win rookie of the year honors, but the championship also. Money was still tight on the home front, and even though he was still winning in the snowmobiles, he knew he needed to move further up the ladder if he was going to keep doing this for a living.
Formula Atlantic was the highest form of open wheel competition in Canada, and Gilles set his sights on it. He managed to convince the owner of the Ecurie Canada team, Kris Harrison, who was an owner and driver himself, to drive his car. It cost Gilles the sum of somewhere between 50 and 70 thousand dollars, for which he had to sell his motorhome to help raise. But he managed the money and the team provided 2 March chassis and a couple of Ford engines. His wife Joan and children Jac and Melanie were forced to live in a travel trailer. Joan had already put up with a lot of this sort of stuff, so it was nothing new to her. She knew she was marrying a racer from the start.
"He came to me and said: I sold our home to buy a car. I thinked maybe he's going mad."
Joann Barthe, Gilles' wife - 1974
Gilles competed in Formula Atlantics for several years, without much to show for it but a broken leg that sidelined him for some time. He eventually got backing from the Skiroule company, which helped defray costs, but things were still tight. Checks from Skiroule bounced, and just as Gilles was in reach of the championship he so desired, it looked as though it was all over.
But an American businessman, John Lane, had taken a liking to Gilles, and offered to buy the two cars he was using. It was just enough to keep the team going for another race, which Gilles won, furthering his championship effort. However, more money was needed, but there was none to be had. A friend of Gilles explained his situation to buisnessman Gaston Parent, who decided to back Gilles's effort. This was the beginning of a relationship between the two that would eventually be more like a father-son relationship than a buisness arrangment.
Gilles would not disappoint his new benefactor and would not only win the next race, but by doing so would win the Canadian Formula Atlantic title. With further backing from Parent, Gilles wrapped up another bit of unfinished buisness, winning at Road Atlanta and taking the American Formula Atlantic title for that year as well.
There was one more race for the year however, and it would be the biggest and prove to be the most important race of Gilles career so far. It was the Molson "Grand Prix" of Trois-Rivières, a Formula Atlantic race that attracted such names as James Hunt, Patrick Depailler, Vittorio Brambilla and Patrick Tambay. Tambay And Gilles would later become best of friends. Gilles would put on a spectacular display, wowing the crowd and fellow drivers alike with his sliding, on-the-gas style. He would win with ease, and he finally drew the attention of the Formula One world that he had so desperatly sought.
"I have just been defeated by this Villeneuve. He is really extraordinary, you should employ him"
James Hunt, to the Marlboro racing manager
So, heeding Hunts advice, Teddy Meyer, head of McLaren, met with Gilles at the US Grand Prix. It would lead to Gilles being signed to the team for 1977. However, it would be a short stay at Mclaren.
Gilles, with Gaston Parent serving as his manager, signed on for a 5 race stint in 1977, along with some F-2 races. It would be a busy year for Gilles, as he competed in the Formula Atlantic series also, taking the title again over Keke Rosberg, with whom he fought tooth and nail all year.
Gilles would also compete in the Can-Am series, mostly by accident. Chris Amon was ready to give up on racing all together, and he informed his Can-Am car owner, Walter Wolf of such. With a substitute driver needed, Walter Wolf mentioned his predicament to a friend. That friend was Gaston Parent, who immediatly accepted the offer on Gilles behalf, informing Gilles later. It was an uneventful experience for Gilles, however, and he ended up finishing 12th in the points that year, his one and only in Can-Am.
His Formula One season was not a great one either, although in his first race at Silverstone, he did manage a 9th place on the grid, and ended up in the 11th position after the race. He had put on a good show, however. At the start, he was running 4th when he noticed the engine overheating. After pitting, it was discovered that it was merely a bad gauge. He went back out on track, falling in position behind the leaders, with whom he would match pace for the rest of the race. If not for that bad gauge, he surely would have had a good finish in store.
That would turn out to be his only Formula One race with Mclaren, as soon, Teddy Meyer informed him he would not be signed for the 1978 season. Gilles went home to Canada, knowing to himself that he could and should be in Formula One. But it was appearing that the door was still closed. It seemed all his determination, money and hard work was going to be for nought. But there had been someone who had noticed Gilles and saw in him a raw talent that was yet untapped. That person was Enzo Ferrari, and he would soon be calling on Gilles.
Gilles had returned home to Canada to lick his wounds to his undoubtably still stinging pride. As he sat at home one evening the phone rang, his wife answered and said to Gilles, "It's for you. From far away. It's somebody who speaks English with a foreign accent, I believe". The voice on the other end said to Gilles, "Just a moment please, this is the Ferrari". Disbelieve was Gilles first thought, someone must be playing a prank. But the person on the phone with the foreign accent went on to say he was speaking on behalf of Enzo Ferrari, and they wanted to know if Gilles would be interested in driving for him.
They wanted him to book a flight to Milan for a meeting with Enzo. Gilles was still in doubt about the whole thing afterwards. Why would Ferrari want him, when there was so much proven talent available. But the next day, he received another call to confirm his flight to Milan and time of arrival. He finally arrived in Milan, and then on to Modena to his meeting with Enzo. They met for about an hour, and even though Enzo was eager for Gilles to sign, much to Gilles chagrin, he had to inform Enzo that he was in fact still under contractual agreement with Mclaren, and would have to see about getting out of it. Enzo told him, that would be no problem.
Gilles returned home again, uncertain what the future held. He had been invited to attend the Italian Grand Prix by Mclaren, and while there Teddy Meyer informed Gilles they would give him the contractual release that would enable him to sign with Ferrari. With his release from Mclaren, Gilles returned to Italy for more talks with Ferrari. He was ushered to the test track at Fiorno, and was soon turning laps in the car. While his first day was full of typical mistakes and laps off pace, the next day his times started to drop.
After the tests, he returned home, thinking that perhaps he wasn't quite ready for Formula One and didn't know if his time on the test track had been good enough. But Enzo had been observing the test from his control room at Fiorno, and after a few days, Gilles received a call, Enzo wanted to know if he would sign to drive for the team. Gilles reponded with an enthusiastic yes, and the legend of Gilles Villeneuve was about to begin.
If someone said to me that you can have three wishes, my first would have been to get into racing, my second to be in Formula 1, my third to drive for Ferrari..."
- Gilles
I like thinking Ferrari can build drivers as well as cars. Some says Gilles is crazy. But I say: let him try."
- Enzo Ferrari
Gilles story in Formula One is not one of World Championships, he never attained that goal. Nor is it about wins, though he did win. But despite not being champion, or amassing win after win, he became a legend. And a legend of epic proportions. Enzo saw the great potential in Gilles when others didn't, and perhaps he was reminded of his old friend Tazio Nuvolari, or even his last great driver before Gilles, Niki Lauda. For Gilles seemed a bit of a mix between the two. Possesing the fortitude to will a car to his demands and push it and himself beyond human limits, much like Tazio. And having the "don't give a damn what others think" attitude of Lauda.
It does seem the old man had a soft spot in his heart for Gilles, but even if so, Enzo was not one to let those feeling cloud his vision of always keeping Ferrari at it's best, the best way he knew how, be it right or wrong. And sometimes that meant being a hard ass. But that was the way he operated, and it would be no different with Gilles, even if Enzo did think highly of him. No one really knows for sure just how he or Gilles felt about their relationship towards the end, but that's for later in our story.
Gilles first race for Ferrari turned out to be the 1977 Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport Park, a debut at his home must have been a dream come true. It came about after Ferrari's number 1 driver Niki Lauda, already having the championship sewn up that year, quit Ferrari with two races left in the year. It was a rather uneventful race for Gilles, he qualifyed 17 and retired with four laps to go while in 12th place.
His next race would be the year end Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji. He qualified 20th and on the 6th lap, he ran over the back of Ronnie Petersons Tyrrell, causing his car to flip through the air. Although Gilles was uninjured, a photographer and race marshall were killed, and several spectators were injured. The marshall had been trying to move the spectators out of the area, as they weren't supposed to be there.
"That guy is a public danger."
- Ronnie Peterson
It was a tragic occurance that Gilles felt much sorrow for, but he felt the true blame lay on the organizers, who should never have let the spectators in the area to begin with. It was with that thought that he made his peace with the situation, and moved on.
The 1978 season started with great promise. Gilles showed his skill at the season opening Argentinian Grand prix, qualifying 7th and finishing 8th, one spot behind teammate Carlos Reutemann. It would be a season of ups and downs. At South Africa he would retire with engine trouble, but the next race, the United States Grand Prix West at Long Beach, Gilles would show his worth. After qualifying 2nd, he jumped to the lead at the start and led until lap 39. He was being pressured by a surging Niki Lauda at that point, and when he attempted to lap the Shadow of Clay Regazzoni, he clipped Clays car and crashed out.
He would crash in the next race at Monaco as well. Then at the Belgium Grand Prix, he would run a solid 2nd to the dominate Lotus of Mario Andretti, until a flat tire on lap 40 forced him to pit. He came back to finish 4th. That would be his best finish until the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, where on a rainy day, he would survive a race of attrition to finish 3rd, for the first podium finish of his career in Formula One.
"Every winter, you would reckon on three or four big spills - and I'm talking about being thrown on to the ice at 100 mph. Those things used to slide a lot, which taught me a great deal about control. And the visibility was terrible! Unless you were leading, you could see nothing, with all the snow blowing about. Good for the reactions - and it stopped me having any worries about racing in the rain."
- Gilles on his snowmobile experience and how it helped him in Formula One
"He is a bit strange but he surely is a phenomenon."
- Nelson Piquet
The next race would be the Italian Grand Prix which saw Ronnie Peterson lose his life. Gilles had qualified 2nd that day, but he and Mario Andretti were sent to the back for jumping the restart, and Gilles ended the day in 7th place. From there it was back to his home continent and the United States Grand prix at Watkins Glen, where he would qualify 4th and run 2nd until engine failre on the 22nd lap.
But Gilles would save the best for last at his home Grand Prix in Canada, the years final race. It was decided that the traditional venue of Mosport was too dangerous and a course was laid out around the Ile de Notre Dame, a man made island that had been site of the 1967 Expo and had hosted part on the 1976 Olympics. There Gilles would qualify third, and after leader Jean-Pierre Jarier pitted because of bad brakes, Gilles would win his first Grand Prix. He took the lead with 21 laps to go and never looked back. It couldn't have been better for Gilles, in front of a huge crowd of his countrymen, he proved he was a Formula One driver that could win, not just look spectacular until he crashed.
"I finally broke the ice, this victory was needed after all the disappointments of this last year. This is the happiest day in my life."
- Gilles
1979 would be a good year for Gilles. He would add to his win total and come close to claiming the championship, only missing out on it because his teammate was a bit faster. Jody Scheckter joined the team and he and Gilles would prove to be a powerful alliance, taking 1-2 in the championship points. Ferrari provided them with the 312T4. Although it was unweildy aero monstrosity, it had a potent flat V-12 engine, which was a brute.
And Gilles set about putting that power to good use, but it was a bad start to the season, being forced to retire at the season opener in Argentina when the engine failed, and finishing a rather uneventful 5th in Brazil. But Gilles would then embark on a winning streak, starting with the unofficial Race of Champions at Brands Hatch, where he bested the field. And come the 3rd race at South Africa, Gilles would qualify 3rd, and take the early lead. A hard rain fell, which caused the race to be stopped for awhile, but Gilles led the way again at the restart. When the track started to dry, Gilles was forced to pit, relenqueshing the front spot. He would regain the lead on lap 52, and hold off his hard charging teammate for his first win of the year.
The next race was the USGP at Long Beach, which was proving to be a favorite track for Gilles. He took the first pole position of his career and after a messy start that required three tries, mostly due to official errors, Gilles led from the start and took home his 2nd win of the year.
A spin in Spain would see him end up 7th on the day, a finish order he would duplicate at Zolder in the following race. But that hardly tells the story of what a day he had. He tangled with the Williams of Clay Regazzoni, seems he had trouble passing Clay, for some reason. It damaged the front wing on Gilles car, forcing him to pit for repairs. He came back out in 24th position, but stormed back to the 3rd position, where he was running when he ran out of fuel at the end. It was an amazing run that doesn't come across as such just by looking at his finishing position.
"Should this race have been made by Jim Clark you all would be exultant. You could at least clap your hands to Villeneuve".
- Mauro Forghieri after the race
"I race to be the first even when I can't win, I like racing all the same, for the sake of racing. This is my job and nothing stops me. Should I not think this way I could not be a driver."
- Gilles
He would run in 2nd place for awhile at Monaco before transmission failure ended his day. But the next race, the French GP at Dijon, would be the stuff of legend. Gilles would qualify 3rd and take the lead early, yet the handling went away and he would fall back to 3rd after being passed by Rene Arnoux. And on lap 78, Arnoux's engine began to sputter and Gilles caught him, and a wild melee ensued that's still spoken of in awe today. He and Arnoux went hammer and tongs battling for the spot. Banging wheels, dipping and diving in front of each other. But in the end, Gilles would beat Arnoux back to the line to take 2nd place from Arnoux by 2/10ths. It was the type of performance that won Gilles a legion of fans and placed him among the all time greats of Formula One.
"I think Ferrari has a great driver".
- Enzo Ferrari after battle with Arnoux
"I tell you, that was really fun! I thought for sure we were going to get on our heads, you know, because when you start interlocking wheels it's very easy for one car to climb over another."
- Gilles, on duel with Rene Arnoux
At the British GP he would qualify a lowly 13, but made a good run through the field fpr 5th before engine trouble parked him. He would finish 8th at Hockenheim and make an astounding start at Austria to take the lead, only to be passed by Alan Jones and have to settle for 2nd place.
His next race at Zandvoort would be another effort for the ages. After starting 6th he soon took the lead from Alan Jones with a wonderful pass in Tarzan.
But soon afterwards he would spin, costing himself the lead. He rejoined the fray, but spun again 4 laps later, which saw his left rear tire explode. Not one to give up so easy, he rejoined the race and completed another lap on three wheels, but had to retire when he reached the pits as the suspention had been badly damaged. It's still something folks point to as an example of Gilles wild personality. But in truth, Gilles was fighting for his championship life that day and knew it was in jepordy, which is why he refused to simply park the car after the tire failure. He just didn't have an ounce of quit in him.
"Gilles was blowing his stack, yelling, 'Put a f***ing wheel on there! Let me go out again!' Finally they made him see the back of the car was a disaster. Then people criticised him for dangerous driving again. His argument was that he didn't know it was so bad. But, believe me, Villeneuve would have gone out again on three wheels! That was the way he was".
- Gaston Parent
"As long as my car goes I drive it. I like racing to the limit, first and last."
- Gilles
Next up was the Italian GP, in which Gilles ran 2nd all day to his teammate, Jody Scheckter, which would give Jody the championship. Gilles shadowed him the entire race and may well have been able to make a pass. If he had finished in front of Jody, Gilles championships hopes would have still been alive, though by a slim margin. But Gilles knew he had his chance to be in that position himself, and was a loyal teammate to Jody that day.
"Before the end of my career I will be able to write my name in the world register but should this not happen it does not matter. I race because I like it."
- Gilles
There was a non championship race held at Imola, which Gilles lead for awhile before banging into the back of Niki Lauda in a fight for 1st, which ended Gilles day.
"He was the craziest devil I ever came across in Formula 1... The fact that, for all this, he was a sensitive and lovable character rather than an out-and-out hell-raiser made him such a unique human being".
- Niki Lauda
Gilles would finish the year with a 2nd place at the Canadian GP after banging wheels with Alan Jones.
"This is typical of Gilles. We are to recognize that he never surrenders."
- Alan Jones
He would then win the last race of the year, the USGP at Watkins Glen. It was a rainy day, but had quit before the start. Gilles led for awhile before relinquishing to Alan Jones, and after Jones lost a wheel, Gilles cruised to an easy victory.
Watkins Glen 1979: During the extremely wet Friday practice session for this race, Villeneuve set a time variously reported to be either 9 or 11 seconds faster than any other driver. His team-mate Jody Scheckter, who was second fastest, recalled that "I scared myself rigid that day. I thought I had to be quickest. Then I saw Gilles's time and - I still don't really understand how it was possible. Eleven seconds!" Jacques Laffite merely laughed and quipped "Why do we bother? Gilles is different from the rest of us. He is on a separate level."
It had been a good year for Ferrari, with Jody Scheckter winning the WDC and Gilles finishing 2nd.
Gilles teamed with two other drivers in an Italian Touring car race in 1979. His team won, but was Dq'ed.
1980 would be as bad a year as 79 had been good. The new Ferrari 312T5 was as bad aerodynamicaly as the 312T4, and the flat V-12 was no longer enough to overcome the cars deficiencies. Ferrari was at work on a new design with a turbo-charged engine, but it would not be ready until late in the year. Both cars would fail to finish the season opener in Argentina.
At Brazil, Gilles would qualify 3rd and make a jaw dropping start, zig-zagging between the first two cars to grab the lead, only to have his race end when he spun due to a stuck throttle. The team would record DNFs at Kyalami and Long Beach.
Gilles would get a 6th at Zolder, 5th at Monaco 8th in France and suffer another DNF in the British GP. A 6th in Germany, 8th at Austia and 7th at the Dutch GP would follow. The new 126C Turbo would be ready for Italy, but Gilles could only manage a spectacular accident, hitting the barriers nearly head on and bouncing back onto the track. The other cars managed to dodge him, and he walked away unhurt.
The Canadian GP would see Gilles get caught up in a large wreck at the start. He would restart in a new car and finish 5th, and end the year with a DNF in the USGP. The year couldn't be over fast enough, it had not been a great effort. So much so, Jody Scheckter decided he had seen enough, and retired from racing.
Gilles would be teamed with Didier Pironi in 1981, and it would prove to be a fateful matchup the following year. 1981 would prove to be as equally frustrating as 80, though there would be wins. Ferrari was using the 126CK Turbo, which would be a bit unreliable, but fast. The FISA-FOCA war was in full swing, which meant the race in Kyalami was dropped from the schedule.
So the season opener would be at Long Beach, where Gilles recorded a DNF. Brazil would see another DNF due to the turbo breaking, which may have been due to Mario Andretti climbing over Gilles car at the start when Gilles checked up after Prosts car balked. Another DNF at Argentina.
That was followed by a pole position at San Marino. Gilles led for some time, but was caught out when he had to pit for tires during an on again off again rain. He would go on to finish 7th. A 4th at Belgium would be followed up by an unlikely win at Monaco, when he found himself in the right place at the right time to pass the ailing car of Alan Jones.
Gilles would get back to back wins by triumping in the next race on a very hot day in Spain. His Ferrari was powerful on the straights, but slow in the turns as the field bunched up behind him. They could get along side in the corners, but Gilles would pull away on the straights and lead a 5 car train, separated by less than 2 seconds, across the finish line to earn the last victory of his career.
Two more DNFs in France and Britain, a 10th in Germany, another DNF in Austria, a spectacular accident at the start in Holland when he vaulted over at slow car, then another DNF due to the turbo at Monza was typical of his year. He managed a third in the rain at his home GP in Canada. He would race along side his brother Jacque that day, who was making his first start.
The year would end at the USGP, racing around the fountains of Ceasers Palace in Las Vegas, where he would be DQ'ed for starting from the wrong grid position made a bad end to a long, frustrating year.
In 1981, the Abatte company that made powerboats had a promotional exhibition race on Lake Como. Five Formula One drivers participated, Gilles, Pironi, Ricardo Patrese, Marc Surer and Bruno Giacomelli. Gilles won the race. Gilles even raced against an airplane, ala Tazio Nuvolari. Only Gilles went up against a fighter jet.
1982 saw Gilles paired again with Didier Pironi in a new Harvey Postlethwaite designed 126C2 Ferrari. The first race in South Africa saw Gilles retire early with a bad turbo. It was on to Brazil where Gilles would set 2nd on the grid and lead until a spin ended his day. Then, at the USGP in Long Beach, Gilles would finish 3rd, but suffer a DQ over the odd wing configuration on the Ferrari.
Then came the race that will live in infamy for Gilles fans. At the San Marino GP, in what was an otherwise dull race, as several teams had boycotted over a DQ to Nelson Piquet and Keke Rosberg at the Brazilian GP, Gilles led most of the way, and was cruising to a seemingly easy victory. The only car near him was his teammate Didier Pironi, who Gilles assumed knew the rules of Ferrari, Gilles was number one driver and Pironi should hold his place, and not fight for the win.
But that was just what Pironi did, passing Gilles in the final laps. Gilles would retake the spot, only to have Pironi pass him again, only now it was to late and there was no room for Gilles to get back around, so Pironi took the win over Gilles.
"He stole the race"
- Gilles
"A team such as Ferrari knows well that they cannot order somebody or some other to win at the fourth Grand Prix of the season..."
- Pironi
Now was the fateful day at Zolder in the Belgian GP. Gilles was still mad over the incident at Imola, and the fact that some on the Ferrari team were backing Pironi. During qualifying for the race, Gilles set out for a last shot, probably wanting to best the time of Pironi, who was ahead of him on the grid. While on a flyer, Gilles came upon the slower car of Jochen Mass.
Just as Gilles ducked to the right to pass him, Mass moved to the right in an effort to get out of the way. There was no way to avoid the collision, and Gilles struck Mass's car and became airbourne. It landed nose first and cartwheeled, ejecting Gilles from the car and throwing him into a catch fence. For all intents and purposes, the great Gilles Villeneuve was dead from the moment of impact. It was not until later in the day that he was removed from life support, after all effort was made and all hope gone, and nature took it's course.
Gilles was no more. A stunned and morose Ferrari team withdrew from the race. Gilles belonged to the ages now. Many would blame Gilles death on his anger over the clash with Pironi and the Ferrari team, and say that he was trying too hard and was forced into a mistake. If any blame is to be placed, it should perhaps be on the 126C2, which was a design that pushed the limits of lightweight vs. safety. It not only took the life of Gilles, but would shortly thereafter end the Formula One career of Didier Pironi, who's legs were badly injured in a crash.
But from all I know of Gilles Villeneuve, he would have been on the gas just as hard that day no matter what the circumstance. It was the only way he knew to drive, flat out, on the gas. There was no quit, no fear, no backing down for even a moment in Gilles. It's what made him so great and how he became the legend he still is today, and will always be. Like the great Bernd Rosemeyer before him, his time in racing was short, yet he made the most of his chances. If he was going to try at all, he was going to try it full tilt. Gilles was a shooting star that acended to stratospheric heights. Godspeed Gilles, you are gone but not forgotten.
A star is left up there, in the sky; a star he was given as a present by a group of Venetian supporters, complete with a certificate in the special "Parisian register of the sky", at the 1981 Italian Grand Prix eve, in Monza: the "Villeneuve star".
Constellation of Perseus
AD = 3h 21m 26.6s
De = +43 deg 19' 47"
Magnitude = 4.96
"I never think about it, it would be silly. When death decides to come there is nothing you can do. Mine is a dangerous job, but nowadays everything is dangerous."
- Gilles on death
"I will miss Gilles for two reasons. First, he was the fastest driver in the history of motor racing. Second, he was the most genuine man I have ever known. But he has not gone. The memory of what he has done, what he achieved, will always be there."
- Jody Scheckter's eulogy
The Villeneuve legacy would live on. Gilles son Jacque would win the Indianappolis 500 in 1995, and the World Championship in Formula One in 1997.
Gilles family was very important to him and always followed him on every circuit in the world. "I can't live without them" he would say. Before every race he used to tell them: "Wait for me, it won't take long."
Gilles is perhaps best summed up by those who knew him:
"Most people believe my father was crazy and I am very happy about it."
- Jacques Villeneuve, 1997
"He left us for still unknown reasons. Destiny deprived us of a great champion, who I loved very much. My past is full of sad memories: my father, my mother, my brother, my son. I now look back on myself and see all the people I loved. Among them there is also this great man, Gilles Villeneuve."
- Enzo Ferrari
"He will remain as a member of the family of the truly great drivers in auto racing history. He did not race to finish. He did not race for points. He raced to win. He was small in stature, but he was a giant."
- Juan Manuel Fangio
"We will not forget him, as we are talking about a wound that will never heal completely. Nobody can fill the void he left."
- Patrick Tambay
"I know no human being can do miracles but Gilles could really surprise us sometimes."
- Jacques Laffite
And finally, two quotes from Gilles himself:
"I know what I can and what I cannot do; I admit it, I am a bit crazy with cars but this is the way I am. I adore driving my racing car to the limit, when I race a couple of seconds slower just because I am leading, I get bored."
- Gilles
"I love and respect my fans because races exist thanks to them. This is the reason why one must always give the best of himself, we are to offer our audience a real show."
- Gilles
