Who is Juan Pablo Montoya, the former F1 driver who expects the FIA to not ban Verstappen

19:17, 09 Jun

Updated: 20:10, 09 Jun

byCas van de Kleut

Juan Pablo Montoya made a remarkable statement about Max Verstappen after his incident with George Russell in Spain. The Colombian wondered if the FIA would change the penalty system to make sure the Dutchman's ban did not come to fruition. But who is the former Formula 1 driver?

Montoya began his Formula 1 career with Williams, driving his first season in 2001. He retired no less than eleven times that season, but the races he did finish were often successful. Four times he stood on the podium: three times in second place and once he even managed to win, in Italy.

How successful was Montoya's racing career?

In total, he won seven races in Formula 1. One of those victories came in Monaco, in the 2003 season, which was extra special, because he was the first Williams driver since Keke Rosberg in 1983 to win in Monte-Carlo.

Ultimately, Montoya ended his Formula 1 career in the 2006 season. After ten Grand Prix McLaren decided to replace him with Pedro de la Rosa. Montoya then moved to NASCAR, where he raced for Chip Ganassi Racing, achieving two in the stock car racing series.

Montoya also found success in the Champcar and Indycar series. The Colombian won the Indy500 twice, once in 2000 and once in 2015, and the 1999 Champcar championship. In addition, he also won the 24 Hours of Daytona three times.

Juan Pablo Montoya racing in NASCAR

Montoya's expectation of a potential Verstappen race ban

Meanwhile, Montoya often gives interviews in which he expresses his opinion on Formula 1's current events. This was also the case after the Spanish Grand Prix, in the MontoyAS podcast. Then, his son, Sebastian Montoya, said that if Verstappen gets a suspension, he would quit altogether.

Montoya Sr. responded: “I don't know what's going to happen there. I don't think he won't come back because he has a contract and he has to do it. But the organisers and Formula 1, it's very different when you penalise someone like Magnussen, who is behind on the grid and is, without disrespect, like a filler.”

Montoya therefore does not expect a suspension to follow: “People from outside see it like that. But if you don't take the world champion to the race, what are you going to do? Do you understand? how people are going to react? How are they going to sabotage the race? I think that's something that I wouldn't be surprised if they change the rules surrounding that before it happens.”