Villeneuve to drive for Braun Racing in Montreal

Braun Racing is pleased to announce that former Formula One World Champion Jacques Villeneuve will drive the No. 32 Dollar General Toyota in upcoming NASCAR Nationwide Series events at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Canada and at the inaugural event at Road America (Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin). Both tracks hold special meaning to Villeneuve. He earned his first career CART Series win at Elkhart Lake and the return to Montreal will mark his third career Nationwide Series start at the world-renowned road course named after his father, Gilles Villeneuve, also a legendary F1 racer.

Last season in Montreal, Villeneuve qualified Braun Racing's No. 32 Toyota Camry in the sixth position. Despite heavy rain conditions that enveloped the area for the second consecutive year, the highly skilled driver brought home a fourth-place finish. He is a road course phenomenon with a tremendous amount of experience at both race tracks. A two-time winner at Road America in the CART Series (1994 and 1995), Villeneuve also claimed the pole position for the 1995 event.

In a career that has spanned more than two decades, Villeneuve has found success that can be rivaled by very few. He has captured world championships in both the CART and Formula One Series and was the winner of the 1995 Indianapolis 500. To win championships in both CART and F1, in addition to the famed Indy 500, is a feat that has only been accomplished by two other drivers.

"It's great to be back driving with Braun Racing and Dollar General," said Villeneuve. "Racing again after an exciting and fun race last year in Montreal, and now to also be doing the race at Elkhart Lake (Road America) where I won my first Indy race is going to be full of good memories! I am very much looking forward to it!"

"We are very happy to have Villeneuve back behind the wheel of the Dollar General Toyota at Road America and Montreal," said Braun Racing owner, Todd Braun. "He is an extremely talented driver and has had very strong runs in our cars in the past. His experience and success at Road America will be a great asset to our team and its road course program."

François Dumontier, President of Octane Management and Associated Promoter of the NAPA Auto Parts 200 Presented by Dodge, was very happy with today's announcement. "The return of Jacques is of course great news for the Montreal fans. But what is more interesting is that racing at Road America will help him get better acquainted with the Braun Racing team members, and also get some seat time in the car. Come the Montreal race a few weeks later, Jacques will be in race mode and could be one of the pretenders looking for the win. To also know that Patrick Carpentier, another one of the crowd favorite, will be in the field next August enables us to anticipate at lot of enthusiasm from the fans"

Tickets for the 2010 Montréal NAPA Auto Parts 200, Presented by Dodge are currently on sale. To order the best grandstands tickets and see Jacques Villeneuve, Patrick Carpentier as well as several other NASCAR stars on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Saturday and Sunday August 28-29, fans must call 514 397-0007 or order online anytime at www.circuitgillesvilleneuve.ca/en/.