Villeneuve: Ban Mirrors in F1

Former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve says Formula One would be far safer if wing mirrors were banned.

The Canadian also told Autosport magazine in an interview published on Thursday that he would like to see a return to slick tyres and the abolition of refuelling.

"I'm serious," said the BAR driver. "If you don't have mirrors, you cannot block.

"If you're following someone and he doesn't have mirrors, you know he hasn't seen you so you know he will turn into the corner. In a race situation, it would be 10 times safer without mirrors. You just mind your own business, like the motorbike guys."

Villeneuve said that while mirrors were safer on a road car, drivers used them in Formula One to help them block their rivals. Asked whether he had raised the idea, the 1997 champion replied: "Yeah - and everybody just laughs of course. But if you think about it, it makes sense."

The magazine made clear that Villeneuve's comments were made on the eve of the last German Grand Prix, which was marked by a first lap collision between Williams' Ralf Schumacher, Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello and McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen.

Ralf was fined $50,000 for the incident with the other drivers still to be investigated.

The German's defence was that it was a racing incident and Barrichello and Raikkonen were in his blind spot and he could not have seen them coming.

Ralf's older brother Michael, Ferrari's World Champion and Villeneuve's bitter title rival in 1997, has in the past aggressively moved across the track at starts to defend his position.

Schumacher was also excluded from the 1997 season classification after he appeared to try to push Villeneuve off the track as the Canadian overtook him in the title-deciding European Grand Prix.