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Villeneuve unconcerned
about future, says Clear
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2003.06.19
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BAR-Honda driver
Jacques Villeneuve is focused on the forthcoming European Grand Prix
and not on his future whereabouts, his race engineer Jock Clear said
today.
The Canadian is out of contract at the
end of the current season and his future remains unclear with BAR
requesting Villeneuve to take a pay-cut if he is to remain with the
Brackley-based outfit. But Clear said: "I don't think he's
considering next year at the moment. Obviously it's in the back of
his mind.
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"Where he goes for
next year is obviously being looked at by (manager) Craig Pollock
and obviously other teams are talking to him but as Jacques is
concerned he's just got to concentrate on getting a good result at
the Nurburgring."
Villeneuve has endured
miserable fortune this season after reliability issues forced him
out of more than half of the races so far and Clear knows BAR have
to improve the performance of their car. Teammate Jenson Button has
retired only once, but 1997 World Champion Villeneuve has been left
frustrated at scoring only three points this season for his sixth
place in the Brazilian Grand Prix.
"Obviously we want
to get some results this season and show what this car is capable
of," Clear added. "It's a quick car and reliability on our
side has been nothing short of diabolical really. It can't continue
at that rate. A lot of it is down to bad luck.
"It's not that the
car is inherently unreliable. Jenson's only had one race failure
down to reliability. If we can just get some luck on our side of the
garage and get some results... well, that's all we're concentrating
on at the moment."
Clear, who worked with
Villeneuve at Williams when the Canadian won the title, still
believes the 1997 World Champion can challenge for the title once
again after six years without success.
"I think if he
finds the right drive or if BAR manage to get a really strong car,
Bridgestone is a really strong tyre and Honda is a really strong
engine then it will all come together and there's no doubt about it
that Jacques is the man to win you a World Championship," he
said.
"When the car is
right up there, he has that cutting edge. Top drivers have to be in
top teams to make it count and so we really need to provide him with
a car that does him justice."
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