Moving to the North American Toyota Atlantic series, he won five times on tracks that he had never seen before.
He moved swiftly to Indy Car racing, and was Rookie of the Year in 1994. This same year saw him take second place in the Indianapolis 500 and the win at Road America, for the Forsythe team, ranking sixth overall for the season. 1995 saw him take the Indy title, as well as winning the Indianapolis 500.
Jacques made his Formula One debut with Williams in 1996, almost winning his first race, after qualifying in pole, but teammate Damon Hill took the victory. His first victory came at the European Grand Prix, followed by wins in Britain, Hungary, and Portugal. He chased his teammate all the way to the final round of the season, but an accident saw Jacques out of the race, and Damon Hill drive on to take the title.
In 1997, he won three out of the first six races, then a further four wins, saw him one point behind Michael Schumacher at the final race in Jerez. Controversy surrounded this race, but Schumacher retired, and Jacques drove the ailing Williams over the line in third, but it was enough to clinch the title.
Losing the Renault engine for 1998, Williams never seemed to be able to match the speed of their competitors, and the highest place Jacques finished was third, for both Germany and Hungary. He finished fifth overall with 21 points.
1999 saw him as the number one driver for the revamped Tyrrell team, British American Racing, where he hoped to reaffirm his status as World Champion for a second year, but things didn't go as he had hoped, with the majority of the season seeing him retiring from race after race. A few good qualifying sessions didn't follow through to fruition and he finished the season pointless.
The year 2000 saw him remain with BAR and together with the added power of the Honda engines in the new season, he had hoped to see victory once again. However, the domination of Ferrari and McLaren proved to be too strong and podium finishes for the Canadian still failed to eventuate. Despite the lack of wins, the team moved up to fifth in the constructor's championship and was regarded as the most improved outfit on the grid.
Partnered with old time friend, Olivier Panis for the 2001 championship, Jacques finally made it to the podium however, wins were still far from coming. Toward the end of the year there were complaints that the car just wasn't up to scratch and the Canadian finished out the year hoping for better performances in 2002. However, on the eve of launching the new BAR004, long time friend and mentor, Craig Pollock stepped down from the outfit, leaving Jacques questioning his future with the Brackley based squad. Only four points were forthcoming in 2002 and although there were many rumours he was to follow Pollock's path and leave the Brackley based squad, Jacques remained for 2003 alongside Jenson Button.
2003 would prove to be a particularly unhappy final year with BAR. Two sixth positions gave the Canadian six points but team-mate Button had twice the number of points. The US Grand Prix would prove to be Villeneuve's final race with the team, with the driver travelling to Japan for the season finale, but not participating as Takuma Sato took his seat. It was never clear who made the decision not finish the season, but the Villeneuve-BAR relationship was over once and for all.
Jacques Villeneuve was without a ride in 2004. The Canadian was linked to a Williams test in the summer, but the rumours came to nothing. The Italian Grand Prix weekend saw a turn-around for Villeneuve however as Jarno Trulli completed his last race for Renault. The week after the Italian Grand Prix, Villeneuve arrived at Silverstone in plain white overalls and was soon testing for Renault. The decision was taken that Villeneuve would complete the final three races for the season in China, Japan and Brazil. For Villeneuve, this was a chance not to be turned down as he could help the Anglo-French team beat BAR to second place in the constructors' championship.
The same week also saw Villeneuve confirmed at Sauber Petronas for 2005. In the space of a week, Villeneuve would complete the end of the 2004 season and had a two-year deal with Sauber in place. The former Champion can now step out of the BAR shadow and prove his pace in something other than a Williams or BAR.
