There will be a familiar name to road course racing next weekend as Jacques Villeneuve takes over the No. 51 TAG Heuer Eyewear Chevrolet for Phoenix Racing at Sonoma Raceway.
The 42-year-old native of Montreal, Quebec, CAN isn’t a stranger to NASCAR competition making three previous Sprint Cup Series, nine Nationwide and seven Camping World Truck Series starts. His best results were in the Nationwide Series where he earned four top-fives and six top-10 finishes; all on road courses.
Villeneuve has also competed in F1, CART, and USAC races. He was most successful in F1 winning 11 times and CART where he won five times and was the series champion in 1995.
“We wanted to put a driver in our No. 51 Chevrolet who would give us the best chance to win at Sonoma Raceway,” said James Finch, team owner. “When the opportunity came up to have someone like Jacques Villeneuve in our car, we were very happy to make that happen.
“It’s a long way out there to not be competitive. He gives us the chance to not only do really well, but to actually win the race. We led laps there last year and almost did win it; we plan on getting the trophy this time.”
Sponsorship from TAG Heuer Eyewear isn’t a new thing for Villeneuve as the two were partnered up during his F1 competition days.
“We are very happy to have Jacques Villeneuve representing our eyewear in the race at Sonoma Raceway,” said Robert Cooper, Racing Director for TAG Heuer Eyewear. “He was an excellent ambassador for us during his F1 days and we’re glad to be part of his return to NASCAR racing.
“We’d like to thank James Finch and Phoenix Racing for making this possible. We know Jacques is going to be looking good in our TAG Heuer Eyewear, and on the track in the No. 51 Chevrolet.”
Tag Hauer PR
