A pragmatic Jacques Villeneuve sees no reason for Sebastian Vettel to throw in the towel in F1 despite the four-time world champion's continued struggles, insisting the German is "making millions" doing his job despite the difficulties.
In Monaco, Vettel enjoyed his best performance to date with Aston Martin, qualifying eighth and scoring his first points of the season thanks to a creditable run to P5.
But the 53-time Grand Prix winner will need to confirm his upswing in form in the Principality that followed a poor run of results in the opening four races of the 2021 season that stirred up talk of Vettel's impending exit from F1.
Villeneuve admits that Vettel's underperformances before Monaco were "sad to see" and an extension of his uninspired outings with Ferrari last year.
"This weekend was good, before that it was just a continuation of the last two Ferrari years. That was sad to see," Villeneuve told Motorsport-Magazin in Monaco.
"This weekend, he made the difference. The car is not what they expected. The old Mercedes doesn't work with the new rules. As a team, you can't develop that."
©AstonMartin
However, when asked if the 33-year-old should pack it in and head home, permanently, the Canadian ridiculed the "crazy" question.
"People always say, 'Oh, he's not winning, he should step down'", he replied. "It's like everything in life: it's a job too. It's fun to race, but it's also a job.
"With this you pay for your children's education. You pay for everything with it.
"If you can still drive in Formula 1, something competitive, having fun driving a car and making millions in the process, why should you step down?
"Unless you're scared of dying or something. It's always the craziest question I'm asked."
Villeneuve pointed to Vettel's efforts in qualifying at Monaco as an indication that a flame continues to burn in the German driver's heart.
"You will not do a good qualifying in Monaco if you no longer have the fire or the passion," said the 1997 F1 World Champion.
Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
