"We had a good first day, although it wasn't about chasing quick times: the first priority was to get a comfortable driving position within the car, and we have worked away at that all day," commented Villeneuve.
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| After a year on the sidelines Jacques was just happy to be back in the motorsport series he loves. (Photo: Renault) |
"I had expected things to be more difficult physically because the lap-times are a lot faster than when I last drove in F1, and Silverstone is possibly the most physically demanding circuit of all, but I feel fine. The R24 seems a nice car and handles well, but our aim today was to begin learning about the car - we did not work on set-ups at all. Overall, we made good progress."
Villeneuve will test again today, and barring any more problems should place faster times than yesterday. If he can find himself mid-pack at the end of the day, he may just have secured himself a race seat at the next GP in China. So as not to be confusing, Villeneuve will not drive for Renault during the 2005 season if he gets the chance to race alongside Fernando Alonso for the remainder of this season. The opportunity would be a good warm-up for next season though, and could eventually become an exciting alternative for the French Canadian once his Sauber contract runs out, providing he performs well during the next two years.