Villeneuve: I wish F1 raced on the oval

"The F1 circuit in Indianapolis isn't a bad track, although I feel it's not as good as it could be," said the 1995 500 winner. "If I'd designed it I'd have used both straights on the oval, not just one of them. However, circuit design isn't my job!

"Sometimes I wonder how a Formula 1 car would behave on the oval itself. First, we'd need different tyres than the ones we currently use, and we'd have to change the set-up a lot. If you did all that, then I reckon it would be easy to go flat for the entire lap. We'd definitely be faster than a current Indy Racing League car. Sadly I doubt we'll ever get the chance to find out!"

At the last race in Monza, BAR scored points for just the third time this season, but with Eddie Irvine doubling Jaguar's tally with third place, the team has dropped to eighth in the constructors' standings. However, BAR is just a point behind Jordan and team boss David Richards is hopeful of another top six finish on Sunday.

"Monza saw another small and very welcome step forward for BAR thanks to the latest evolution of the engine," he said. "Honda has been working extremely hard to continue development at a time when many other manufacturers have switched focus to next year."

"The team have done a great, testing at two different venues and turning the cars around in such a short space of time. We have made good progress in preparation for this race and hope to maintain the momentum of a successful weekend in Monza."