Villeneuve bought his NASCAR ride

We have it on good authority that Jacques Villeneuve paid for his NASCAR truck drive from his own pocket! That explains his all-white driver's uniform with not a single sponsor on it.

In return he gets a cut of the race winnings. He thinks in the long run his investment will pay off. He also gets the NASCAR TV announcers, as they do with all the NASCAR drivers, gushing praise all over them to make them into "heroes." This is one of just many ways NASCAR builds their brand on the backs of the "heroes" they make.

Jimmy Spencer, analyst on NASCAR RaceDay
“We’ve got to look at Jacques Villeneuve’s record – he was the 1995 Indy 500 winner, he won a CART championship, 11 Formula One wins and a Formula One championship. That’s way past Juan Pablo Montoya. Jacques Villeneuve will make it. Is he with the right team? I don’t know – time will tell. The bottom line is Jacques Villeneuve will be a factor in this sport. It may not be at Bill Davis Racing but let’s not give up on Tommy Baldwin and those guys at Bill Davis yet."

Kenny Wallace, analyst on NASCAR RaceDay
“Jacques Villeneuve is too big of a name for anybody to give up on him. We admire him. There was pandemonium over Juan Pablo Montoya coming over here. One thing I need to draw a point to – all of Bill Davis Racing’s cars are outside the top 35. Dave Blaney missed this race (Dover Cup race). What I’m worried about is Villeneuve actually having a performance in the Daytona 500. Will he make the Daytona 500 and how hard will it be on him?"