Villeneuve to miss Spanish GP?

[Gerard]

According to Autosport magazine Jacques Villeneuve could miss the Spanish Grand Prix because of a back injury.

The British American Racing driver apparently hurt his back in the Brazilian Grand Prix a month ago.

Villeneuve raced with a loose seat at Interlagos and has been suffering severe discomfort ever since. He drove for the team in the San Marino and British Grands Prix but had to withdraw from the final day of this week’s Barcelona test when the pain became too intense.

Villeneuve plans to see a specialist before deciding whether or not to race at Catalunya next weekend.

If he is forced to pull out, team test driver Darren Manning could be at the head of the queue to deputise.
However Frenchman Patrick Lemarie, an ex-Formula 3000 driver who is not as highly-rated as Manning but is a close friend of Villeneuve, was chosen to replace the Canadian for the final day of this week’s test.

Lemarie was 14th fastest, 0.9s slower than team-mate Ricardo Zonta.