Gilles Villeneuve

Gilles Villeneuve was one of the most thrilling and beloved drivers in Formula 1 history, a Canadian whose spectacular, fearless style made him a hero to fans and to Ferrari's faithful. Born in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, on 18 January 1950, he raced with a flat-out commitment that thrilled crowds even when it cost him results, and his short career left an outsized mark on the sport.

Villeneuve made his Formula 1 debut with McLaren in 1977 before joining Ferrari, the team with which he is forever associated. He took 6 wins, 13 podiums and 2 pole positions from 68 starts, including an emotional maiden victory at his home Canadian Grand Prix in 1978. He came close to the championship in 1979, finishing runner-up to team-mate Jody Scheckter after honouring team orders, and produced some of the era's most memorable drives, among them an epic wheel-to-wheel duel with René Arnoux at the 1979 French Grand Prix.

His life was cut tragically short on 8 May 1982, when he was killed in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder, aged 32. His legend only grew thereafter, carried on by his son Jacques, who became World Champion in 1997.

Villeneuve drove with pure, uncompromising aggression, sliding his Ferrari on the limit and beyond, never lifting when others would, a swashbuckling style that endeared him to fans and to Enzo Ferrari himself, who regarded him almost as a son. He raced for the joy and the spectacle of it as much as for results, and that romantic, all-or-nothing spirit is why his name endures as a byword for racing passion. The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal carries his memory to this day.