One-time Formula 1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve has slammed the current state of F1, comparing the dramatic Saudi Arabia Grand Prix to a “Hollywood show”.
Villeneuve went further to question the values of the sport, arguing a shift toward entertainment and viewership rather than displays of pure racing.
“It wasn’t F1, it was rental karting,” he told Motorsport.com.
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“Everything was wrong. So I’m not sure what to say.
“Do we want sport and good F1? Or do we just want a Hollywood show? If you want a Hollywood show, today was amazing. But is that what F1 is all about?
“I don’t know. I mean, I think today Frank [Williams] would have turned in his grave, seeing this race.
“And then when you see the team principals, everybody is shouting, and putting pressure even on the marshals and so on, that becomes ridiculous. It really has become ridiculous.
“It was great for the fans. So that probably will increase the viewership. Which is great for F1. But we’re starting to get away from the sport, that’s all. So ultimately, it depends if you’re a purist or not.”
Villeneuve also passed the blame to DRS for the hectic collision which saw race leader Max Verstappen make contact with Lewis Hamilton after Verstappen slowed to let Hamilton through.
“Someone slows down in front of you, you overtake. The problem is those stupid DRS lines. And Lewis didn’t want to cross the DRS ahead of Max,” Villeneuve said.
“He knew Max was letting him by. He just didn’t want them, Max, to have the DRS for the next straight-line, because Max would have overtaken him, so they both played dumb there.”
Even more strange, Villeneuve probed the radio discussion between race director Michael Masi, and feuding teams Mercedes and Red Bull, which resulted in an agreement being struck regarding the organisation of the grid for the race restart.
“A deal being made? Never heard of that. It’s not in the rules. That one, I just I didn’t get it.”
With Verstappen and Hamilton locked on 369.5 points apiece heading into the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi, Villeneuve is hoping for a less chaotic championship decider.
“It’s a Red Bull track. But with the engine that Lewis has every track is a Lewis track now. I just hope we have a nice clean race,” he said.
“And may the best man win, and not anything like today, not Hollywood, at least not in the last race. We already got our Hollywood hits this year.”
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