By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
Juan Pablo Montoya will be a free-agent race car driver near the end of November. That means he can sign with any team after being released from Earnhardt Ganassi Racing earlier this week.
He would be free to sign with any NASCAR team or another racing governing body.
The 37-year-old has been racing in NASCAR since the 2007 season. In 241 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, he has just two wins.
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If you count his 23 races in the NASCAR Nationwide Series over three years from 2006 through 2008, he has just three wins.
“It would be nice to see him with a smile on his face,” said IndyCar driver Dario Franchitti.
While Montoya has not decided where he will continue to race next year, whether it would be in NASCAR, or elsewhere, an IndyCar owner Michael Andretti is already trying to get him to come to IndyCar, where the talented driver has not raced yet in his career. But Andretti is already talking about sponsors for an Andretti Autosport car with Montoya driving in IndyCar next year.
Montoya is no stranger to open-wheel racing, as he raced in Formula One from 2001 through 2006. He also raced in 1999 and 2000 in the now-defunct CART Series.
“I think it would be great for the series, and I think it would be great for Juan Pablo if he wants to do it,” said Franchitti. “I know how good a driver he is. I’d like to think, coming back here, he would get his motivation back and put a smile on his face. I would love to see it happen. He’s got the hunger, and I think he’s at the stage of his life and his career that he’s only going to do something that he wants and he can enjoy.”
Should Montoya switch over to IndyCar, he would join Marco Andretti and reigning 2012 IndyCar champion Ryan Hunter-Reay on Andretti Autosport. And it would be his first time not working under Chip Ganassi since the 2006 season.
“I think having Montoya in the series, or on the team, would be good,” Hunter-Reay said. “I’m open to it. I haven’t heard anything about it, (but) I think he’d be great for the series. He’s one of the top talents in the world, and it would be great to race against him.”
While he will have many opportunities to drive for the 2014 season, those rides will be very limited in IndyCar. And there’s speculation that Furniture Row Racing could hire Montoya should Kurt Busch move to Stewart-Haas Racing once Ryan Newman leaves as a free agent once the season ends.
And recently, Montoya has said that his heart has always been in open-wheel racing, even while racing in NASCAR. And he has had his most success in open-wheel racing, as well.
In 95 races, he had 7 wins in Formula One from 2001 through 2006 and won 11 races in CART in 1999 and 2000. His last open-wheel race came at the 2006 United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis.
“I think you kind of cross that line at some point in your life, and you wake up and you just can’t be bothered,” Scott Dixon said. “You can see that’s not what’s happening with Juan. I would welcome it. I’ve been teammates with him for seven, or eight years now. He’s a good friend and a good person, and if he does decide to make that move, we would welcome him back with open arms.”
Montoya has only won one championship in his racing career, as he won the 1999 CART Series FedEx Championship. While it is not a championship, he also won the 2000 Indianapolis 500, the most prestigious race in the motorsports community.
Montoya could replace James Hinchcliffe unless Andretti adds a fifth car. Hinchcliffe has won three races this season and is without a sponsor and ride next year.
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IndyCar drivers would like to see Montoya come back to open-wheel racing, where he could contend for another championship should he have the right team behind him.
“I get to see what he’s capable of at Daytona 24 Hours every year,” Franchitti said. “I know how good he is, so it would be great to see him back.”
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