Perhaps, suggested one onlooker, he had. After all, like his team-mate, it will take a lifetime of achievement for Villeneuve to emerge fully from the shadow of his father, whose cavalier style is still revered by so many.
Make no mistake, though, he is his own man. His smooth style is the antithesis of Gilles, who was killed when his son was 10, and he has long since wearied of the comparisons. "They are meaningless because it was different in his time," he points out. "I did not go into racing because of my father, he meant a lot to people and I understand why they keep mentioning his name, but I don't race for him... I race for myself.
When I won at Indianapolis, everybody asked me if I'd been thinking about him. I said 'no'. I can't afford to think about him while I'm racing because I've got a car to drive."
