Villeneuve: BAR Big-Headed and Arrogant

The French-Canadian was dropped by BAR at the end of 2003 in favour of Takuma Sato after four relatively unsuccessful years at the outfit, and was forced to sit on the sidelines as the outfit enjoyed their most successful season in F1.

But after BAR's fall from the top this year, which has left them without a single World Championship point heading into this weekend's United States Grand Prix, Villeneuve has put the boot in by claiming the team let last year's success go to their head.

"After last season (a second-place finish), they became big-headed and arrogant again," he said in an interview with the Indianapolis Star on Thursday.

"Suddenly, they're back where they were when they started. If you've never been at the top, it's not a problem. But once you get a glimpse of what you can get when you reach the summit, then it's hard."

Villeneuve also went on to heap further criticism on his former boss David Richards, whom he enjoyed a troubled relationship with following the ousting of his manager Craig Pollock as BAR boss at the end of 2002.

When asked whether he was surprised that Richards was openly critical of him during his time at the team, Villeneuve said: "He does that to anyone who he believes is bigger than him.

"He has a big ego problem. He was on a mission to destroy me, and I don't know why.
 
"He kept saying my salary was draining the budget, but it never came from there. If that changed, it wasn't my concern because I didn't force them (in)to that contract. At the end of the day, he got removed when people found out what he was doing."