Jacques Villeneuve had no doubts: on the fortieth anniversary of the death of his father (May 8, 1982) he wanted to call Gilles his fifth son who has just been born. The news was given by the former F1 1997 world champion himself with an image posted on Instagram.
In the Villeneuve family there are only boys and Gilles joins the brothers Jules, Joakim, Benjamin and Henri, but there is no doubt that the newcomer bears the more demanding name that recalls his grandfather.
The child is as well as his mother Giulia and the Motorsport.com editorial team welcomes Gilles and greets all his large family.
Now it will be curious to find out which of the five Villeneuve brothers wants to continue a racing dynasty that also saw their great uncle Jacques ride a Formula 1 car three times between 1981 and 1983 without ever hitting the qualification.
Gilles, on the other hand, is a racing legend and has entered the hearts of Cavallino fans for his “impossible” feats that went far beyond the six victories the Canadian had won in his career.
Second in the 1979 world championship behind his teammate Jody Scheckter, he lost his life in qualifying for the 1982 Belgian GP when he took off on the wheels of Jochen Mass’s March 821-Cosworth, after a tragic flight. The world title was won by Jacques with the Williams FW19-Renault in the challenge with Michael Schumacher in 1997. Will the Villeneuve family be the first to chase a world title with the third generation?
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