Leclerc CLEARED to use special Villeneuve helmet despite family 'surprise'
Leclerc CLEARED to use special Villeneuve helmet despite family 'surprise'
Charles Leclerc is wearing a custom, special edition helmet for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, but the Monegasque driver looked as though he may have to switch back to his original design before FP3 for the wet session which saw him finish inside the top three.
Torrential downpours have covered the Montreal circuit all weekend – an occasion which Charles Leclerc decided would be fit to honour the late Ferrari and Canadian legend Gilles Villeneuve with a special helmet.
The design, which is a mix of both Charles’ and Gilles’ helmets, was brought into question by the family when they noticed the placement of the sponsorships.
However, Gilles' son Jacques told Motorsport.com: "It was just a big surprise to see the helmet yesterday because nobody had called the family. It's mainly my mother and my sister involved in that. So that was just a big shock.
Villeneuve family feel more ‘consultation’ required
“And when Lewis [Hamilton] wore Ayrton Senna's helmet the family was involved, obviously, because it's not just something you do like this.
"But then I chat with Charles and he said, 'Oh, sorry, I didn't think about it.' And then I think he talked with my sister and everything seems to be clean there.
“So it was just the way of doing things, you just check with the people involved first. That's all. So it's not a huge issue. But it was done without any of us knowing, which was a big surprise.”
Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz flagged up the situation before FP3 on Saturday afternoon saying: “We understand that the Villeneuve family and Jacques Villeneuve were unhappy I think with the appearance of the Ferrari logos on there – the sponsor logos and felt that there could’ve been a little bit more consultation.
“Ferrari’s response and Charles Leclerc's response [that] I got at the beginning of the session was ‘Look, this is absolutely meant to be a good faith tribute.
“'We never expected this to [or] the intention was never to be any kind of thing where we are using Gilles Villeneuve’s helmet and the design to advertise our sponsors',” he concluded.
READ MORE: Charles Leclerc reveals STUNNING F1 legend tribute helmet
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Hamilton dealt major Newey blow as shock COMPLICATION revealed
- 39 minutes ago
F1 News Today: Incredible Verstappen exit clause reignites F1 rival talks as Mercedes milestone reveals shock RED livery
- 2 hours ago
Horner outlines Ricciardo target to save F1 dream as major Newey announcement made - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Mercedes reveal shock RED livery to celebrate historic milestone
- Yesterday 22:57
Ricciardo makes five-race admission in bid to survive F1 axe
- Yesterday 21:57
Red Bull is 'burning' after Horner and Marko display
- Yesterday 20:57
Related news
Ex-F1 boss names Canadian Grand Prix HEROES
Ferrari issue kept causing car to almost STOP during Canadian Grand Prix
Ferrari's true pace REVEALED by F1 expert after Canadian GP
Alonso's Canadian GP advantage over Hamilton EXPLAINED by F1 expert
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860