Villeneuve no longer Raikkonen critic

Jacques Villeneuve says he is no longer a critic of Kimi Raikkonen.

Earlier, the 1997 world champion regularly hit out at the performance and questionable motivation of the Ferrari driver.

But Villeneuve said at Monza: "I have become a Kimi fan.

"I’m very surprised by how much Kimi has improved, and how well he is currently driving," the French Canadian said of the 2007 world champion.

"He seems to be more concentrated than ever before," Villeneuve told the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat.

"A couple of years ago, Kimi seemed bored, as if he was only there because he had a contract. But now everything is different.

"Kimi seems to be happy, he speaks a lot with the press, he is highly motivated and clearly he is enjoying his driving.

"I think his happiness has come from his family life with his wife and son. It’s like everything in Kimi’s life is in balance," Villeneuve added.