F1 world champion Villeneuve in frame for Vanwall WEC seat
Formula 1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve is in the running for a seat with the Vanwall Le Mans Hypercar squad in next year’s World Endurance Championship.
A drive for the 1997 title winner aboard a Vanwall Vandervell LMH was described as “a possibility” by team boss Colin Kolles after Villeneuve’s test with his squad at Barcelona last week.
Kolles would not elaborate on the prospects of 51-year-old Villeneuve returning to top-flight sportscar racing for the first time since his two-year stint with the Peugeot LMP1 squad in the 2007 and 2008 seasons.
He stressed that the test at Barcelona last Wednesday was organised to see if Villeneuve got on with the Gibson-engined non-hybrid LMH developed by the German ByKolles squad under the Vanwall Racing banner.
“The purpose of the test was to see if he enjoyed driving the car, not about how quick he was,” Kolles told Autosport.
“And I think he did enjoy it: he drove in the morning, had a chance to digest it and then got back in the car in the afternoon.”
Villeneuve shared the car on the first day of the three-day test with Tom Dillmann and Esteban Guerrieri, who are the nominated test drivers for the Vanwall and will be on the driving squad if Vanwall is accepted into the WEC for next season.
Vanwall Vandervell LMH, ByKolles Racing
Photo by: Vanwall Group
Joao Paulo de Oliveira, who also drove in Barcelona, is another strong candidate for a seat with the team and has links with Kolles dating back nearly 20 years.
Kolles, whose team was turned down for the 2022 WEC, said that he planned to file at least one entry and “possibly two” for next season.
It appears that Villeneuve joining the team could hinge on it pushing ahead with a second entry.
The homologation process of the Vandervell LMH is underway and it is understood that the car will go to the full-size Sauber windtunnel for official FIA aerodynamic testing early next month.
The Vanwall has undertaken multiple tests since April and has completed in excess of a Le Mans 24 Hours distance in that time.
Related video
LMP2 class set to be axed from WEC from 2024
Porsche confirms 963 customer team delay in 2023 WEC, IMSA
Why physical fitness is an understimated challenge for IndyCar rookies
The lack of in-car physical fitness is an “underestimated” hurdle for an IndyCar Series rookie, according to Dale Coyne Racing's Indy Lights graduate Sting Ray Robb.
Bubba Wallace ‘got dumped’ by Austin Dillon in NASCAR Clash
Bubba Wallace says Austin Dillon “dumped” him out of second place in NASCAR’s chaotic Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday night.
Albon warns Williams has "long road ahead" to recover in F1
Alex Albon admits that his Williams Formula 1 team has a “long road ahead” as it tries to progress up the field this year.
Toyota won’t put more pressure on Katsuta at WRC Rally Sweden
Toyota World Rally Championship boss Jari-Matti Latvala says the team won’t "put more pressure" on Takamoto Katsuta to deliver in his first drive for the factory team this weekend.
Why the WEC should make space for modern garagistes in 2023
OPINION: There is plenty of excitement over the glut of manufacturers tackling the Hypercar class of the World Endurance Championship this season. The selection committee is set to face headaches over who it decides to admit and who gets turned away from the 2023 entry list, but history tells us that the smaller entrants have a place
Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022
The season just gone was a memorable one for many of our staff writers, who are fortunate enough to cover motorsport around the world. Here are our picks of the best (and in some cases, most eventful) from 2022
Is Qatar the price motorsport fans have to pay?
OPINION: Fresh from hosting a controversial 2022 football World Cup, Qatar has added its name to the 2024 World Endurance Championship calendar. Although questions may be asked about its presence on the calendar, is it simply the price to pay for having a healthy racing championship?
How Toyota defeated Alpine for the 2022 WEC title
Toyota #8 trio Brendon Hartley, Sebastien Buemi and Ryo Hirakawa outscored their rivals in the last season before the World Endurance Championship’s top class gets ultra-competitive. Here's how their Hypercar battle with Alpine and the remaining class tussles played out in LMP2, GTE Pro and GTE Am
The long road to convergence for sportscar racing's new golden age
The organisers of the World Endurance Championship and IMSA SportsCar Championship worked together to devise the popular new LMDh rule set. But to turn it from an idea into reality, some serious compromises were involved - both from the prospective LMDh entrants and those with existing Le Mans Hypercar projects...
How Porsche's Le Mans legend changed the game
The 956 set the bar at the dawn of Group C 40 years ago, and that mark only rose higher through the 1980s, both in the world championship and in the US. It and its successor, the longer-wheelbase 962, were voted as Autosport's greatest sportscar in 2020 - here's why
Why BMW shouldn't be overlooked on its return to prototypes
OPINION: While the focus has been on the exciting prospect of Ferrari vs Porsche at the Le Mans 24 Hours next year, BMW’s factory return to endurance racing should not be ignored. It won't be at the French classic next year as it focuses efforts on the IMSA SportsCar Championship, but could be a dark horse in 2024 when it returns to La Sarthe with the crack WRT squad
The problem sausage kerbs continue to cause
Track limits are the problem that motorsport doesn't seem to be able to rid itself of. But the use of so-called 'sausage kerbs' as a deterrent has in several instances only served to worsen the problem, and a growing number of voices want to see action taken
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.