Villeneuve fits in at Sauber.

Jacques Villeneuve has spent his first official day as an employee of the Sauber Petronas operation he will drive for in 2005, visiting the team's Hinwil factory in Switzerland to have his first seat fitting.

The seat will be made for this year's dependable C23, in which Villeneuve will begin his two-year contract with Sauber at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya when winter testing starts on 26 November. Further fittings will almost certainly be required as the team works on the development of the replacement C24, which is expected to debut early in the New Year.

"The first day of work in a new team is always something very special, and I'm already looking forward to my first test - and my first impressions - of the C23 with eager anticipation," Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion admitted, "During the course of the season, Sauber's performance curve was clearly pointing upwards and, of course, I'm hoping that we'll be able to continue that trend next year."

Villeneuve heads to Sauber on something of a low note, having been unable to help temporary employer Renault fend off former team BAR in the battle for second place in the 2004 constructors' championship. The Canadian was drafted in for the final three events of the season, following the departure of Jarno Trulli, but failed to score points. While Renault admitted that hiring him was a mistake, Sauber boss Peter Sauber has said that he did not expect Villeneuve to be an instant force on his return, following a year on the sidelines.