Villeneuve goes to work

If Canadian driver Jacques Villeneuve's skin wasn't thick after years of racing in Formula One, it is now.
The world-class, championship caliber driver spent Friday preparing to qualify for his first Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway under fire from several top Cup drivers who claimed he didn't belong on the track.
"I don't think that they're saying I'm not qualified. They are concerned for their Chase. In their shoes, I would say the same thing. You don't want any unknowns out there," said the 36-year-old Villeneuve after final practice Friday. "But at the same time I've always tried to race intelligently and I'm not here to try and be a hero."
Winner of CART and F-1 championships and the 1995 Indianapolis 500, Villeneuve said after Cup practice that he just wants to "get the mileage and get ready for Daytona."
Chase points leader Jeff Gordon said he shouldn't be cutting his teeth on the Talladega Superspeedway."I think it is risky. I just don't think that it makes a lot of sense, not for them to be doing it, but for NASCAR to approve them to be running this race. I think that there are plenty of other tracks and races like the ARCA race and the Truck race that gets them enough experience to get ready for Daytona."
Gordon is one of several Cup drivers who have publicly voiced opposition to NASCAR's decision to approve Villeneuve, despite his racing credentials abroad and recently in the Craftsman Truck Series.
Penske Racing driver and Cup contender Kurt Busch said he understands; he was once in Villeneuve shoes, but there is a process to follow. "I remember the procedure and it seemed he got those credentials and access very easily, I remember starting on a short track, then a mile-and-a half and then bring an ARCA car to Daytona. But he's right in the fire; sink or swim, that's what he'll have to do."
"There are two sides to every story," Clint Bowyer said. "I'd like to see him have to earn it a little bit but then again they have earned it in other forms of auto racing and certainly their name helps."

Final Qualifying for todays race:

6. Jacques Villeneuve

11. Tony Stewart

22. Jaun Montoya

23. Clint Bowyer

34. Jeff Gordon

41. Kurt Bush

Looks like Jacques is pretty qualified to me. What do you think?

UPDATE:

Villeneuve qualified sixth in his Bill Davis Racing Toyota, but relinquished that spot to move to the back of the field for the start of the race."We decided to do it [Sunday] morning," he said. "It was the logical thing to do. Our car was set up for qualifying and we didn't know how it was going to handle. Starting from the front or the back doesn't really change anything.
"I had more to learn from the back, anyway. Also, it was to show respect to all the guys fighting for the Chase. I was thankful for them allowing me to race here, which is really special to me. It was just a way of saying thank you."
It wasn't an easy day for Villeneuve, though.
"Early in the race was tough for some reason," he said. "I was really tight. I almost ran into a couple of people on the inside line because of that. I didn't want that to happen, so I moved up to the high line. That's why I got into the wall.
"On one of the big wrecks, I slammed on the brakes and went down to the apron, but got sandwiched between a couple of cars. I lost the shifter ball and the radio plug came loose, and I lost third gear on the last restart. So we had a lot of things going on. But it was a great day to learn and I'm quite happy with the result. The goal [Sunday] was to stay out of trouble and not make enemies so next time I come back everything will be a little bit easier. We accomplished that."

Final results:

1. Jeff Gordon

7. Kurt Bush

8. Tony Stewart

11. Clint Bowyer

15. Jaun Montoya

21. Jacques Villeneuve

43. Jeff Burton

story and picture courtesy of http://www.nascar.com