Canadian Jacques Villeneuve, the 1 F1997 world champion, will not finish the World Endurance Championship (WEC) season with his Vanwall team, he announced Wednesday, less than a week after the formalization of his replacement for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. "I am deeply disappointed to have learned of my replacement for the upcoming 24 Hours of Le Mans by a public announcement published by Vanwall Racing Team ByKolles on May 25, 2023. To date, I have not received any official communication from the team, which is all the more surprising as I am still under contract to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race," the 52-year-old said in a statement.
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I made the decision to give up the rest of the WEC season with Bykolles. Instead, I will refocus my attention and energy on preparing for a more successful and professionally fulfilling 2024 season," he announced. Last Thursday, the Vanwall team unveiled on its social networks the trio that will participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 10 and 11: Frenchman Tom Dillmann, Argentinian Esteban Guerrieri and another Frenchman, Tristan Vautier, who replaces Villeneuve. If the team was content to reveal the three names without explanation, the boss of the Vanwall team Colin Kolles then justified this choice to the weekly AUTOhebdo. "There are two reasons for our decision. The first is that he does not have enough mileage in our car because of various circumstances. The second is that his wife is expecting a child in a few days. That's why we decided it was better for him not to drive at Le Mans," he said.
On Wednesday, Villeneuve assured that "as a family of drivers, we have always managed to balance our personal lives and our professional careers, with motor racing always occupying a prominent place. My preparation for the 24 Hours of Le Mans was meticulous and well organized. I put a lot of time and effort into preparing myself physically and mentally for this extraordinary challenge that I was looking forward to," he said. Villeneuve - who has twice competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans (2007, 2008) - has had a difficult start to the season with mechanical problems and an accident in all three races of the championship.
