Montoya happy with improvement
Juan Pablo Montoya expects McLaren’s resurgence to gather pace in this weekend’s United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis.
Montoya’s team-mate Kimi Raikkonen has stood on the podium at the past two grands prix after showing encouraging early pace at both Silverstone and Montreal.
That represents an improvement on the start of the season, when neither Raikkonen nor Montoya looked serious challengers.
Montoya believes McLaren can continue that positive progress this weekend at Indianapolis, where he is the only driver other than Michael Schumacher to have won a grand prix.
The 2000 winner, who crashed on lap one in Montreal, said: “We should be very competitive. My car in race trim was very good in Canada and it was a bit annoying not to be able to show the pace.
“I think Kimi had a better qualifying car but I thought I could have a better race car. It was a bit frustrating from that point of view.
“That’s the way racing goes and I think here it should be a strong race for us. I think the trend is we’re getting better and better and better. It’s a matter of trying to get a good qualifying lap.”
The highlight of Montoya’s career came at Indianapolis in 1999 when he won the legendary Indy 500 before his move into Formula One.
The Colombian, who retains a home in Miami, may get the chance to reclaim that title next season as a result of his diminishing options in Formula One.
With his McLaren contract expiring and no immediate sign on an extension, Montoya has seen his options elsewhere shrink, prompting talk of a return to racing in the US.
The 30-year-old, a six-time grand prix winner, insists he is “very comfortable” with his 2007 options but is staying tight-lipped on what they are.
He said: “I don’t know yet. I’m looking at it. When I make a decision, you’ll find out. I think the difference between myself and a lot of guys, I don’t make my discussions public – I don’t talk through the press. I talk through the teams, and that’s it.”
If McLaren can close in on world champions Renault, Montoya can expect anything but an easy ride from Fernando Alonso at Indianapolis.
The Spaniard has a 25-point lead over Michael Schumacher in the standings but he is vowing an all-out attack to keep his hands on the number one for next year.
He said: “We need to go for wins. I think the best defence is to keep attacking and keep increasing the gap with second place.
“We have to keep winning. We cannot wait and see the others win. We have to keep doing the maximum.”
