Villeneuve: 'Zonta mistake cost us points'
Ricardo Zonta did himself no favours in his efforts to keep his seat at BAR when he caused his team-mate Jacques Villeneuve to spin, then slid off the track himself a few laps later.
The two BAR drivers made contact when the Brazilian tried to pass his team-mate on lap 34. Villeneuve managed to continue and went on to finish the race in eighth, but was disappointed at not finishing in the points. The former world champion pulled no punches when pressed about what he thought of his team-mate.
"I have to say I don't have much respect for him," said Villeneuve. "With the strategy we were running we would have finished in front of Mika Salo, who was fifth. Ricardo's mistake cost us fifth and sixth positions and the team three points."
When Zonta slid off the track four laps later, he said a radio message from his team caused him to lose concentration: "The team radioed me to say I had been assessed a 10-second penalty and I guess I lost concentration for a moment. The car was still on slicks in the wet conditions, I locked brakes and slid off the track."
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