Imola saved my bacon, says JV.

Sauber driver, Jacques Villeneuve has admitted that without Imola - when he finished in fourth place, he could really have been in it.

Speaking during Wednesday's FIA press conference, the Canadian added that things are starting to come together - and while they will probably struggle at circuits that require hard compound tyres, he is optimistic about those that use soft'ish tyres, like they will utilise this weekend at Monte Carlo.

"I am very happy that there was Imola because if not it would have been very difficult to be here now," he said.

"We seem to have a good pace in the race but have a hard time to qualify the car, unless we are on soft tyres like Imola, so this track could work better than Barcelona.

"We have worked a lot with the team and we have evolved the car to a position that suits me better and also the team understands what I need to drive the car. We have been having new aerodynamic bits during the season that have helped a lot also."

So what is he aiming for this year?

"It is difficult to have a target. As long as we can have a few good races, like Imola, then I think we will be alright," he concluded. "What we don't want is to keep having races like Barcelona. Any track where you need hard tyres, I think, we will be in trouble."