Jacques Villeneuve’s arrival in the FIA Formula E championship may have raised a few eyebrows within the motorsport community, but it was an easy decision for the Canadian driver to make.
Last week, it was confirmed that Villeneuve would race in the second Formula E season with Venturi GP following a successful private test for the team two weeks ago.
The former CART and Formula 1 world champion made his public debut for the team at Donington Park earlier this week, and he will return to the Venturi car on Monday for the second pre-season test.
“It started with a test basically,” Villeneuve told the series’ website. “I was in Hungary at the Formula 1 doing TV commentary and on Saturday I got a call asking me to test the Venturi car.
“So I was supposed to go to Canada but had to change my plans. Whenever you get the chance to sit in a race car you have to say yes.”
Villeneuve’s return to single seater racing was met with a mixed response from fans on social media, with many questioning whether he would see out the full season.
However, the Canadian has revealed that coming back to a full-time drive and committing to a year of racing was a very easy decision to make.
“I got in the car and immediately enjoyed it,” Villeneuve said. “It drove like a proper single seater and I was happily surprised by the feeling in the car and the team atmosphere was great.
“So it was an easy decision to do the full season. It’s a series that will keep getting faster and if you look at the rest of the racing world they try to make them slower, so that’s definitely a positive.”
The new FIA Formula E season starts on October 17 in Beijing, China.