"Jacques is having a difficult time so far," Coulthard told Scotland's Daily Record. Coulthard recently threw a birthday party for himself in Switzerland and had a talk there with Villeneuve. "Two races in and already the media are questioning if he will keep his seat. I know he is capable of great things but unless we see a big improvement by Imola it wouldn't surprise me to see him walk away or be encouraged to."

Coulthard's comments echo concerns from Villeneuve's manager, Craig Pollock, that the 33-year old Canadian is lacking confidence in himself and the C24. But team boss, Peter Sauber, isn't giving up so quickly. "Jacques' performance (in Malaysia) was improved", Sauber said. He felt confident that upcoming changes to the car would improve its aerodynamic balance which would help Villeneuve would "understand the (C24) car better". Sauber is also looking to add a third driver for Friday practice sessions to aid the team in race setup and tyre choice, a move highly encouraged by Villeneuve himself.

When confronted directly about the security of Villeneuve's race seat Sauber was quick to say, "It's not something I'm going to talk about." Don't read too far into that comment, however, as Sauber never is very forthright in responding to the rumour mill.

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