Following his success in snowmobile racing in the early 70's, he switched to Formula Atlantic car racing and dominated this class in the middle of that decade.

On July 17, 1977, he started his first Formula 1 Grand Prix on board a Ford-powered McLaren, at the Silverstone race track in England. Later that same year, Gilles took part in two other Grand Prix races (in Canada and Japan) driving a Ferrari, the team for which he raced the remainder of his career. From 1978 to 1982, Villeneuve entered 64 races for Ferrari and won 6 times. His first career win was the 1978 Canadian Grand Prix, on the Ile Notre-Dame circuit in Montréal. In each of his appearance at the Canadian Grand Prix, between 1978 and 1981, he electrified the Canadian fans and earned points by finishing 1st, 2nd, 5th and 3rd.

In May, 1982, Villeneuve died during a practice session for the Belgian Grand Prix, on the Zolder racetrack. A few weeks later, before the presentation of the 1982 Grand Prix, the City of Montréal Executive Committee adopted a resolution to rename the Ile Notre-Dame track Circuit Gilles Villeneuve to honor the memory of the late and great racer.