Trulli Expects Villeneuve to do Better in Japan

Italian Jarno Trulli praised returning World Champion Jacques Villeneuve on Thursday for the job he did as his replacement at Renault in the Chinese Grand Prix two weeks ago.

Trulli left Renault under a cloud after the Italian Grand Prix in September and the Anglo-French team immediately drafted in Canadian Villeneuve for the final three races of the season.

Villeneuve was fit but had spent a season on the sidelines following his split with BAR before last year's Japanese Grand Prix. He finished in a disappointing 11th place after qualifying down in 13th on the grid.

"Jacques did what he had been expected to do," said Trulli. "He has been away for a long time before driving the car again and it is never easy when you stop for a year to jump in a new car and then do an extremely good result.

"I think Jacques did what he could do and you can always argue that he could do better or not, but I am sure he would improve his performance now because he's got a bit more experience in the car."

Villeneuve has more mileage in the Renault heading into this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix and will be hoping to improve on his performance before leaving for Sauber at the end of the season.

He was brought in to help score points for Renault as they chase the runners-up spot behind Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship and they are now nine points behind BAR-Honda with two races left to go.