Villenueve Cashes In

Jacques Villeneuve wrapped up the IndyCar PPG Cup championship with a problem-filled ride in the Bank of America 300, a race that saw rookie Gil de Ferran close the season with his first victory.

Villeneuve, 24, punctured two tires and had a problem with his rear wing on the way to an undistinguished 11th-place finish on Laguna Seca Raceway’s 11-turn, 2.214-mile road course. But Al Unser Jr.’s bid to overtake Villeneuve in the standings fell far short as the defending series champion drove to sixth place.

Unser needed to finish first or second to have any chance to beat Villeneuve, and even then the title duel would have depended on the decision of a special panel that will hear Team Penske’s appeal of Unser’s disqualification for a technical violation after he had apparently won at Portland in June.

Johnny Herbert, his determination unshaken by job worries for next season, drove his Benetton Renault to victory in the Italian Grand Prix. Herbert’s surprising victory came after the leading Ferrari of Jean Alesi was stopped by a rear-wheel break with seven laps left and world championship rivals Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill collided while battling for the top places, then spun off and retired. Herbert, who will be released by Benetton Renault at the end of the season and is without a bid for 1996, scored his second career victory, both this season. He beat Silverstone driver Mika Hakkinen of Finland by 17.7 seconds in a thrilling 53-lap race.