Villeneuve to race in Speedcar

The Canadian is the biggest name to sign up for the Asian-backed, NASCAR-style series so far, and will compete in both the Bahrain rounds and the series finale in Dubai a week later.

Villeneuve, who lost his Bill Davis Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup drive earlier this season, believes Speedcar will provide useful relevant experience for any future NASCAR opportunities.

"Speedcar Series looks like a great event and I have heard that it is a lot of fun," he said.

"It's a series still in its infancy and will build up but I think it's a great idea. On a personal level, Speedcar will give me more road racing experience with this kind of cars which will be useful in future NASCAR road courses events, and it's also a great excuse to meet race fans."

Villeneuve will join fellow ex-F1 drivers Jean Alesi, Johnny Herbert, Gianni Morbidelli, Stefan Johansson, JJ Lehto and Ukyo Katayama in Speedcar.

His arrival has received an enthusiastic welcome from series boss Benoit Lamonerie.

"We're proud to have Jacques join the Speedcar family," he said. "He will be the first Formula One world Ccampion and NASCAR driver to sign with us.

"And we're also excited that Speedcar Series is growing to a multinational level at the moment with drivers from 12 countries across three continents."