F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve RANTS at 'childish' Daniel Ricciardo again as war of words continues

Ricciardo, Villeneuve, socials — Photo: © IMAGO

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Villeneuve RANTS at 'childish' Ricciardo again as war of words continues

The Canadian's comments have ignited a verbal spat between the pair

Rhys Thomas

Thursday 13 June 2024 17:57

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Jacques Villeneuve has launched a new attack on Daniel Ricciardo after his intense criticism of the Australian kicked off a war of words between the two.

The 1997 F1 champion from Canada was working with Sky Sports during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, and used that platform to deliver a litany of critiques towards drivers, teams, and the regulations.

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His most pointed criticism, though, came at the expense of Ricciardo, who has struggled to find form since returning to the sport in 2023 with Visa Cash App RB - the junior team of Red Bull, where the 34-year-old excelled for five seasons.

Villeneuve has been known for his interesting takes, and told GPFans exclusively earlier this year that Red Bull were not responsible for their record-breaking 2023 success.

Daniel Ricciardo has struggled since returning to the Red Bull family

The outspoken Jacques Villleneuve won the 1997 world championship

What did Jacques Villeneuve say about Daniel Ricciardo?

Villeneuve has not been shy in revealing his thoughts on members of the paddock, from Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari to the effects of the allegations surrounding Christian Horner on Red Bull.

In Canada, Villeneuve questioned why Ricciardo was still in F1, and said, "If you can’t cut it, go home."

Ricciardo responded to that on track with P5 in qualifying, and then took aim at the former racer off the tarmac, saying "I heard he's been talking s***, but he always does. I think he's hit his head a few too many times. So I don't know if he plays ice hockey or something," according to journalist Adam Cooper.

Villeneuve issued a direct response to those retaliatory words. Speaking to Crypto Sports Betting, he said: "It's completely unprofessional and has nothing to do with the business and it can be personally insulting which is amazing. If he says that someone hit his head playing ice hockey, how constructive and how professional is that?

"It's very childish and people like Daniel are role models and they think that's the right way to act. You have to be careful with that. I found that really strange when someone says I don't care what people say. You need to have tough skin, in F1 you will be criticised and you have to take it. Don't say something childish and insulting."

Jacques Villeneuve was not shy of criticising anybody at the Canadian Grand Prix

The Australian took points home from the race - his first in a grand prix in 2024 - despite a penalty, but Villeneuve has not let that performance check his criticism.

The 53-year-old said: "Ultimately, the results have not been there. He was really good at Red Bull and since he left them, it's been very difficult and his return hasn't been flamboyant.

“He had a good qualifying session and then an okay race yesterday marred by the false start where he got a penalty and in the end, he scored points because drivers in front of him messed up.

"Obviously I got under his skin because it made him go faster and even Christian Horner thought that it gave him a bit of a boost and maybe he needed that. At least he got a lot of media mileage out of this! What I find incredible is the reaction that some of these drivers have nowadays in the media.

Despite his perhaps ironic comments about media mileage, Villeneuve reiterated his initial criticisms of the eight-time race winner.

"I have no idea why Ricciardo is so protected but he has a huge aura around him. Good for him but imagine if he could back that up with results? He's not lived up to expectations and he's not consistent so he knows he's not up to speed and he hasn't had results that have been good enough."

"It's that simple. There's nothing wrong with saying that. Saying it might hurt but you're in F1, just take it and move on. The truth hurts," he concluded.

Mercedes Daniel Ricciardo Canadian Grand Prix Jacques Villeneuve