Jacques Villeneuve has spoken out about the abuse he received in the dispute over Charles Leclerc’s use of his father’s helmet design at the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix.
On Friday, Leclerc unveiled a tribute helmet in the iconic red and black color scheme of former Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve, after whom the Canadian Grand Prix venue was named.
But Leclerc’s announcement surprised the Villeneuve family, as neither the Ferrari driver nor his management had asked the family for permission.
After talks between Leclerc and Villeneuve’s sister Melanie, who controls her late father’s image rights, the matter was resolved and Leclerc was given clearance to use the design from Saturday.
But before the true nature of the problem became public, 1997 World Champion Villeneuve was savaged on social media for allegedly denying Leclerc the right to honor his father, who died in qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix died.
The former Williams and BAR Honda driver posted a message on his social media channels to “clarify the situation regarding the recent incident where some individuals felt the need to offend me and my family because Charles Leclerc used my father’s helmet.”
Villeneuve lamented that the incident was portrayed worse than it was by certain media outlets and social media commentators as the dispute was amicably settled.
“Unfortunately, the incident was disproportionately hyped, causing unnecessary controversy,” he added.
Charles Leclerc Ferrari tribute helmet
Photo by: Ferrari
Leclerc invited the Villeneuve family to the circuit and posed for photos with them and the tribute helmet on Saturday after the matter was resolved.
“We had a warm conversation in which he sincerely apologized for the situation,” explained Villeneuve.
“I assured him that I consider it a touching tribute and that personally I would have no problem with it.
“However, I stressed the importance of him reaching out to my sister as she is responsible for everything to do with our father. I also suggested that he invite both my sister and my mother to the circuit to allay any remaining concerns.”
On Saturday, his sister Melanie told Motorsport.com: “Charles was very nice about it. We have no objections. It’s a beautiful tribute.”
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