McLaren confirms Montoya for 2005!!!

[tekwar]

News today! Im so surprised that McLaren announced it so soon. Considering McLaren is well known for not announcing their driver line until real late. This is a really pleasant surprised, im a huge Mac fan and i adore Montoya. Kimi and Montoya on the same team, too good to be true.

Taken from F1-live
http://f1.racing-live.com/en/index.html?http://f1.racing-live.com/en/headlines/news/detail/031117121656.shtml


Team McLaren Mercedes is pleased to announce that Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya (28) will join the team for the 2005 Formula One season.

Juan Pablo Montoya won the International Formula 3000 Championship in 1998 and became the youngest ever CART Champion in 1999 and in the following year he took victory in the prestigious Indianapolis 500 race in his first attempt. He graduated to Formula One in 2001, has claimed three Formula One victories, 11 pole positions and finished third in this years' World Championship.

The Team McLaren Mercedes team will confirm the full 2005 driver line- up at a later date but the team's 2004 Championship challenge will be lead by David Coulthard and Kimi Raikkonen.

“We want to win races and World Championships, and in order to do so we have to plan for the future whilst applying every effort in the short term”, commented Ron Dennis, CEO and Chairman, TAG McLaren Group. “The opportunity to sign a talent like Juan Pablo was too good to miss, and there is already a considerable amount of anticipation within our team about 2005.”

“Juan Pablo has achieved a considerable amount of success in his career and we are certain that he will add to this with Team McLaren Mercedes. We are certainly looking forward to seeing what he can do in one of our cars and I believe that it's a prospect that can't fail to excite Formula One fans around the world. However until that happens we will be focusing all efforts on our 2004 Championship challenge.”

“Juan Pablo has become well established in International motor racing within a short time and will fit well into our team”, said Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes- Benz Motorsport. “We have been convinced of Juan Pablo's great talent since he drove a Mercedes-Benz C-Class touring car in the ITC round at Silverstone in 1996.”

“I am thrilled to be joining Team McLaren Mercedes”, said Juan Pablo Montoya. “The team is consistently a strong World Championship contender and has a fantastic heritage. It's a great opportunity for me and I'm really looking forward to the first time I will be able to drive one of their cars. To join them is an amazing challenge and experience which I plan to fully enjoy.”

“However, my short term aim is to concentrate 100 percent on winning the 2004 World Championship.”

[QC]

I think it may happen next year cant see Williams keeping Montoya when he doesn't want to be there. Could Villeneuve be going to Williams?

[Jabba]

I heard this on the news about an hour ago...glad to see it appeared on JW already.

[stracing]

if this is the case i think coulthard should retire. he's just all talk and no show.
hope villeneuve doesn't goto williams, i hope someone else is given the chance. he's been given a chance to show what he's worth and he hasn't been able to deliver.

[noosee]

Thats the right place for him I think :)
I hope he will be beaten by Raikonen next year :P

But who will go to Williams ???

[tekwar]

I think it may happen next year cant see Williams keeping Montoya when he doesn't want to be there. Could Villeneuve be going to Williams?

Coulthard and Kimi both have contracts with mclaren for 2004 and the same for ralf and montoya with williams next year. There will be no changes for next season for these two teams. Remember this change is going to happen in 2005.

[chernobyl]

Thats the right place for him I think :)


I could not disagree with you more. Montoya wont suit the PC and play the team game role that Mclaren have. Montoya is a "speak your mind" type guy and im surprised Mclaren would hire a guy like that as he wont work well in the team. imo ofcourse.

[tekwar]

Thats the right place for him I think :)


I could not disagree with you more. Montoya wont suit the PC and play the team game role that Mclaren have. Montoya is a "speak your mind" type guy and im surprised Mclaren would hire a guy like that as he wont work well in the team. imo ofcourse.

The only team that fully enforces team rules is ferrari. Ferrari has never had a challenger on the team against micheal, unlike the other teams. McLaren wants the best drivers on their team to maximum the possible chances for victory. Why would hiring Montoya surprise you? This is the same team that had the fiery senna on their team last time not to mention countless other characters like that. I cant wait for the 2005 season and we still have a long way to go before the 2004 season begins...dang.

[Jabba]

This is the same team that had the fiery senna on their team last time not to mention countless other characters like that. I cant wait for the 2005 season and we still have a long way to go before the 2004 season begins...dang.

LMAO !!! yeh I wish we had a few more of them now....

[chernobyl]

The only team that fully enforces team rules is ferrari..

1997, Mclaren helped JV win the championship with team orders and Mika was given his 1st victory.
1998...1'st race of the season.


Ferrari has never had a challenger on the team against micheal, unlike the other teams..

I dont know why people keep bringing this argument up. Everyone knows Ferrari is structured around, doing the best for Schumacher and it wont change. Eddie Irvine and Rubens have had more success than they normally would have, if they didnt join Ferrari. Eddie even had a shot at the title which he really, really should have taken. Eddie was not good enough to do it even with the total help of Ferrari.


Why would hiring Montoya surprise you? This is the same team that had the fiery senna on their team last time.

Senna was business minded and worked harder than any other driver to achieve his goals. Senna was a workaholic is any aspect of Formula1. Montoya is a junk food eating, rash and hot headed person. Senna had passion and so does Montoya. I just think Senna is vastly different personality.

not to mention countless other characters like that. .

Who?
Modern day Mclaren: Mika, David, Kimmi....& before, mmm Mansell(maybe a bit firey) Prost, Senna

[Jabba]

Mansell(maybe a bit firey) Prost, Senna


There the ones I would call characters...when they would go into each others pits and punch each other etc....cant imagine kimi doing that.

[possessed_beaver]

i would like to see webber go 2 BMW williams, he could kick some serious arse in that team, because his current team is letting him down,
im suprised they anounced the drivers lineup for 2005 alredy,
anyway can't wait for the next season of F1 racing
GO BMW!!

[draak666]

If I'm not mistaken Button still has a contract with WilliamsBMW. They let him drive for Renault to gain some experience. Perhaps they think he will be up for the job in 2005 and get him back. :roll: Anyway, I'd like to see Villeneuve drive a competitive car again, and why not a BMW...

[tekwar]

When i say team orders, i mean what ferrari did two season, no one does it as blatantly as they do. And ferrari forced Rubens to move away/aside for Micheal "to help his championship". They force rubens to let micheal win in the middle of the season. Talk about being unpopular, even the tifossi fans were booing them, have you ever seen that in the history of f1? I may have bad memory, but i cant remember any team that has done that. All the other teams would do it near the end of the season, which i can understand to help the good of the team. But having to let micheal win when he already had such a huge lead and in the middle of the season is not what you call promoting competition.

And that leads to Micheal not ever having a good teammate. In the late 1980s, McLaren was dominating F1, but was it as boring as it was 2 seasons ago. No because McLaren had Prost and Senna battling it out for the championship. It was far from boring, it was classic, it brings back so much of memories for most f1 fans in fact. They raced each other hard, they even hit each other off the road. Not smart, but it was a race. Its all about competition, not a parade lap around the track. In 2005, you will have 2 of the best drivers on McLaren again, just like what Williams has on their team now. No one would say rubens is one of the best though.

Senna was business minded and worked harder than any other driver to achieve his goals. Senna was a workaholic is any aspect of Formula1. Montoya is a junk food eating, rash and hot headed person. Senna had passion and so does Montoya. I just think Senna is vastly different personality.

Who?
Modern day Mclaren: Mika, David, Kimmi....& before, mmm Mansell(maybe a bit firey) Prost, Senna

Senna is very similar to montoya is many aspects. They are both hard racers, hot tempered and brave on the track. They both have natural talents, and are colorful personalities. They have little respect for their teammates on the track. I missed watching senna since his passing away, and Montoya is the only person that has come close to him, in terms of driving aggression. God bless him.

You named quite a few good ones there, ill help that list out a bit.
Emerson Fittipaldi and Niki Lauda (who actually drove for ferrari as well). But i think prost and senna would be the best examples.

i dont hate ferrari, in fact i use to be their fan until they stop promoting "racing" on their team. Sometimes being too "win win" oriented isnt good for the fans, even if your a ferrari fan, but i understand thats the way they approach F1 and everyone has their own style of management.

[chernobyl]

When i say team orders,EDIT EDIT EDITpromoting competition..


Yes you have a terrible Memory. :)
Back in 1998 at the very first race of the year, David Coulthard allowed Mika to pass him metres before the finish of the grand prix.
David defended their actions with: "we had an agreement, 1st into the 1st corner on the 1st lap wins the race and that may mean switching places at the end of a GP"

Thats just David playing the Mclaren Team Game. What everyone know was that DC was told, move over and let Mika through.

People have very short memories or maybe F1 just has legions of new fans that dont know this stuff, but what Ferrari did in Austria in both 2001/2002 was disgusting/brought the sport into disrepute but is not uncommon.

I am a Schumacher fanatic and was disgusted by Austria 2002 but not surpirsed when it happened but i did spend an entire 2.9 laps praying Ferrari would not do it but it was obvious.

F1+ is a blessing most of the time, but in 2001 we quite clearly heard JT say to Rubens(over the radio) "let micheal through"..in 2002 we saw JT passing "notes" to RB and it was obvious what they would say.


McLaren was dominating F1, but was it as boring as it was 2 seasons ago. No because McLaren had Prost and Senna battling it out for the championship. It was far from boring, it was classic, it brings back so much of memories for most f1 fans in fact. They raced each other hard, they even hit each other off the road.

F1 today is boring for one simple reason..technology
Schumacher is a genius and can sometimes, but only sometimes be the difference but the technology is primary in F1 and the driver is somewhere towards the bottom of "must haves" imo!




Senna is very similar to montoya is many aspects. They are both hard racers, hot tempered and brave on the track. They both have natural talents, and are colorful personalities. They have little respect for their teammates on the track. I missed watching senna since his passing away, and Montoya is the only person that has come close to him, in terms of driving aggression. God bless him.


There is no doubt in my mind that of the current F1 drivers, Taku is the most agressive driver & for quite a number of seasons.

Satos 2002 moto: "maximum attack"

You named quite a few good ones there, ill help that list out a bit.
Emerson Fittipaldi and Niki Lauda

Different era, F1 was much more a sport then rather than a mega business machine it is now.

Sometimes being too "win win" oriented isnt good for the fans, even if your a ferrari fan.

Well im sorry to disappoint you if this is a surprise but you mean very little to Ferrari. The only fans ferrari care about are the ones by the name of shell & vodafone.

F1 is a business 100% of the time and a sport for a few hours every second weekend.

[tekwar]

Yes you have a terrible Memory.
Back in 1998 at the very first race of the year, David Coulthard allowed Mika to pass him metres before the finish of the grand prix.
David defended their actions with: "we had an agreement, 1st into the 1st corner on the 1st lap wins the race and that may mean switching places at the end of a GP"


Theres a difference between what ferrari did and what mclaren did. McLaren did it because they didnt want to batlle each other out of that race. They didnt want to crash into each other aka gentlemans agreement. It was the first race of the season and mclaren never just fully supports one driver unlike ferrari. Like you said, its a business minded sport. not good, but thats what the sport is like now. Ferrari on the other hand wanted to give schumy the most points when he already had a huge lead going into the middle of the season. Before this schumy has won already almost every race, he didnt need that win. And the McLaren incident didnt cause such a big stur for a reason, and thats because it wasnt as damaging as what ferrari did. The only people who point to that incident is the ferrari people looking to say "look they did it too", its the battle of pointing fingers. All the teams cursed ferrari for what they did, why because of the way they did it. And you can see that it was a bigger case just by looking at how the FIA reacted to that incident by banning team ruling immediately. No other incident in the history of F1 caused such as stur as this one. Theres no denying that.


Thats just David playing the Mclaren Team Game. What everyone know was that DC was told, move over and let Mika through.


Was there proof of this? Was the on board radio recorded like that of rubens?


Schumacher is a genius and can sometimes, but only sometimes be the difference but the technology is primary in F1 and the driver is somewhere towards the bottom of "must haves" imo!


Theres no denying schu is the best driver in f1 now. It would be great to see him try to develop another team like renault, just like what valentino rossi is doing for MotoGP now. He did a great job getting ferrari back to the top and i suppose he wants to end his career with them..


There is no doubt in my mind that of the current F1 drivers, Taku is the most agressive driver & for quite a number of seasons.

Satos 2002 moto: "maximum attack"


I would rate Montoya first for his "stupid" moves he makes sometimes. I know a lot of schumacher fans who hate him just because he gives him a real hard time. Taku is 2nd, and i agree he is the first good japanese driver.


Well im sorry to disappoint you if this is a surprise but you mean very little to Ferrari. The only fans ferrari care about are the ones by the name of shell & vodafone.

F1 is a business 100% of the time and a sport for a few hours every second weekend.


You put it like i care? :P
But thats not the point, im saying that Ferrari didnt do the sport any good. Its obvious they dont care by their actions, and thats the reason why so many fans have turned their back on them, but that doesnt matter to them like you said. Anyway they still have countless others to support them to the death.

[chernobyl]

Theres a difference between what ferrari did and what mclaren did. McLaren did it because they didnt want to batlle each other out of that race. They didnt want to crash into each other aka gentlemans agreement. It was the first race of the season and mclaren never just fully supports one driver unlike ferrari.

What?
Jesus man, wake up to what you are saying!
The end result was the same. The previous 58laps were made completely irrelevant and the sport was brought into disrepute. I'll get to the "gentlemans agreement" soon.


Ferrari on the other hand wanted to give schumy the most points when he already had a huge lead going into the middle of the season. Before this schumy has won already almost every race, he didnt need that win. And the McLaren incident didnt cause such a big stur for a reason, and thats because it wasnt as damaging as what ferrari did.

Its no secret. Ferrari want the best for Schumacher which ultimately means the best for Ferrari. Ferraris argument although fickle was that, you never know what is going to happen. 1999 was a perfect example. What Ferrari did was wrong but i honestly think DC/Mikas swap was far more damaging for the sport.

In 2002 before the Austria race, it was obvious Schumacher was going to win the WDC aslong as his car stayed reliable and he avoided injury. Austria 2002 was just alot of salt in the wounds of the other teams but it made very little difference to the outcome of the season. I did boo the shit out of Ferrari but what happened latter in America was far more damaging to the sport.

Schumacher went for a dead heat with Rubens(yeah right) but anyways he accidently handed the victory to Rubens and they laughed about it. Victory had become a joke to Schumacher.

In 1998 before the season had taken any shape or form, DC/Mika had some off the track agreement dictate what happened in a race. Again this proved that victory for DC/Mika was not important but an agreement was far more important.






And you can see that it was a bigger case just by looking at how the FIA reacted to that incident by banning team ruling immediately.

The FIA had TWICE banned team order after Mclaren actions.

1. In 1997 during the GP of Jerez when Mika blocked and slowed and months later it was revealed in radio conversations that JV was told "let mika pass, remember he helped us earlier"[not an exact quote]

2.The rule was refined after the 1998 Australian GP.

..and then in 2002, the FIA set out a very definite ruling on team orders.

You must remember that the FIA did not reprimand Ferrari for their actions of the track, the $1m fine was purely for the podium fiasco.

Was there proof of this? Was the on board radio recorded like that of rubens?


I have none.
DC/Mika are supposed to be racing drivers who go to any length to achieve the WDC. It just doesnt make sense to me. DC races are very hard race and metres before the end says to himself..."ooh that agreement i have with Mika....blah blah blah"...it just sounds stoopid to me.


I know a lot of schumacher fans who hate him just because he gives him a real hard time.


I certainly dont and i thought it was a load of bollox that he got a penalty for running into Schumi in Malaysia.

FIA = idiots.

[tekwar]

FIA = idiots.


Agreed on that one.

Anyway its brewing up to be a very interesting season in 2004 with so many competitive teams coming in.

And with this new announcement, 2005 seems to be set to be just as good. its good for all us fans, i think we will all enjoy it bunches.

[scubywrxr]

Looks like 2005 is goin to be one of the best seasons ...

[Grossi]

Looks like 2005 is goin to be one of the best seasons ...

Especially if Ferrari can replace Barrichello with a younger, upcoming star.. possibly Kimi? 2005 should make for an incredible year in F1. :D

[Toronto]

To much talk about Montoya he hits a fast speed and everybody loves him, when i went the race in Montreal, at all the BMW booths only Montoya shit, i had to look for hours to find a Ralf stuff,
2005 looks like a good season because Montoya is out of Williams :D

[podpi]

Ron Dennis is extremely evil. Here's my thoughts : Ron knows that Montoya is a great driver, but no Michael Schumacher (close to Kimi, but not there). Ron has poached Montoya 1) To take momentum away from Williams, and only 2) because he is a good driver. I don't mind a bit of evilness if it'll help McLaren get the championships :)

[enzoferrari328gts348]

Yes it would be very interesting to see Montoya in a good car for a change, he might get somewhere in 2005