The MONSTA!!

Ray · Post 12 Feb 2007, 01:23

My boy JPM qualified 4th for the Daytona 500!!!!! Wouldn't it be cool if won it one his debut?! I can't wait till next Sunday.

Ciro Pabón · Post 12 Feb 2007, 02:26

Mark Auman at NASCAR.com wrote:So here we are, unhumoristically contemplating the unlikely scenario that allows the No. 42 to cross the finish line first in the Daytona 500.

Darrell Waltrip then begins yelling "Bogota, Bogota, Bogota!" followed by gunfire in the streets of Medellin. And if Montoya doesn't win? Same old, same old.

On the other hand, this whole foreign exchange program could work out very nicely.

This year, we take Juan Montoya. Next year, perhaps we send them Jeff Gordon, since he already has some seat time in their cars -- and he already knows how to say DuPont and Chevrolet in French.

Ted68 · Post 12 Feb 2007, 06:37

Yeah, now if Jacques gets that ride with Roush, this could be very fun.

ketanpaul · Post 12 Feb 2007, 08:42

Well lets hope Montoya can win it, he didnt deserve the treatment he got in F1

Ray · Post 12 Feb 2007, 09:21

ketanpaul wrote:Well lets hope Montoya can win it, he didnt deserve the treatment he got in F1

Ain't that the truth!

Phoenix · Post 12 Feb 2007, 18:06

I was never an avid Montoya fan, but I do agree to some extent that he was treated poorly. But was some if not most of that self-induced?

manchild · Post 12 Feb 2007, 18:52

I think he's one of the racers whose career was killed by marriage. What Yoko Ono was to career of The Beatles that's what Connie was for JPM's career. From day one she gave me impression of frustrated housewife who is bringing him to the bottom. Aside the fact that she looks like Renault ING livery and that kids will have inherit not just father's brains but looks too. I'm sorry if this is offending someone but that's just my impression/opinion

When JPM came to F1 I've put all mu hopes in him as the guy who will move Schuey from his throne. He had that JV's kind of speed and guts in him. If nothing else I find it stupid that a driver who finishes on podium in Monaco stops competing before the season is over. Luck or not but Monaco is Monaco. So I agree that he wasn't treated good in F1, especially by Mclaren.

sebbe · Post 12 Feb 2007, 20:47

I've been under a lot of pressure in my previous job and once I reacted like JPM did when he cursed Williams' the pits crew. Guess what happened? No, I wasn't sacked but it sure was close, and I won't ever make it again.
It was JPM fault and mine too to react like a jerk even when you're right.

I think he was fired by Mercedes' management rather by Ron and Martin; he would have probably ended the season under other circumstances (Norbert is a tough guy, but in a different way compared to Ron).
That was a bitter situation both for McLaren and JPM; but I wanted to kill him after that stupid crash and every time he had one of his off-track excursions.

zenvision · Post 12 Feb 2007, 20:56

I think the problem was the he thought he was superior than he really was. He was wrong at magny, but that major flaw was more evident in 05. When he saw he couldn't get grips with Kimi, instead of rolling his sleeves up and try to reach that level by either improving himself or adopt better, he started whining and making excuses instead of facing the real cold truth. Same happened this year and what made it worse is that the car was bad and he neither couldnt beat his teammate nor get some wins which was frustrating, then again, instead of fighting for his place or in another team, he went to Nascar. Pity.

Ignis Fatuus · Post 12 Feb 2007, 21:00

Another blamestorming?

I wish him the best and I definitely will try to watch the races.

It certainly doesn't look like Montoya's carrer was destroyed by marriage (or anything else).

Ray · Post 12 Feb 2007, 22:06

Connie is one of the worlds best looking women, she can yell all she wants. If that is the way she acts, of course. He's lucky to have found such a woman.

I think he'll do great. F1 treated him badly cause he spoke his mind, and didn't tow the corporate line all the time.

Ranald · Post 12 Feb 2007, 23:53

Ray wrote:I think he'll do great. F1 treated him badly cause he spoke his mind, and didn't tow the corporate line all the time.

Have you ever seen a NASCAR driver being interviewed? If he couldn't tow the party line in F1 he certainly won't be able to do so in NASCAR.

fizzer · Post 17 Feb 2007, 20:26

I couldn't be more excited for JPM's real NASCAR debut either!

However... he qualified 36th... I dunno where you got this 4th from?

Anyways, bump drafting makes the superspeedway races at least worth watching and Juan showed no cowerdice in his earlier outings on the big tracks.

I really can't wait to see what he'll do on the road courses, but hey, one step at a time

Ray · Post 17 Feb 2007, 23:14

fizzer wrote:However... he qualified 36th... I dunno where you got this 4th from?

At the time I posted that, he was qualified fourth. Read the time it was posted, and you'll see why I said he was fourth, before you say you don't know where I got it from. Thanks. It always help to pay attention to what you are reading.

And I don't care what anyone says about NASCAR only turning left, at least the drivers have a personality, and unlike F1 the first person into turn 1 doesn't usually win. They may seem boring, but there is as much strategy, maybe more, than F1 races.

fizzer · Post 18 Feb 2007, 18:59

Dude, chill out. I didn't say I disliked oval racing. I said not a thing about only turning left or comparing to other types of racing. In the past I thought the superspeedway races were boring, but I like them now with the heavier use of bump drafting.

And you said he qualified 4th for the Daytona 500. Which he did not, I'm excited about following him in NASCAR too... but wait till the fat lady sings.

I'm a relatively new fan of nascar (really only started watching about 2 years ago) so forgive me if there has been a lot of bump drafting in the past.

I'm a fan of racing, period. I love it all and I love that there's all kinds of disciplines out there, each with very different characteristics and idiosyncracies.

Personally when it comes to NASCAR, I prefer the type of tracks in this order:
Short-Medium Tracks (Bristol, Darlington, Martinsville, dover)
Road Courses
Superspeedways

But, if I'm free... I plan to watch every single race this year.

Just preference, thats all.

Back OT. I'm pulling for JPM too! I really wanna see him win his first outing though I don't think its likely. Good news is that with the draft and the bumping, starting 36th really doesn't matter. He has just as good a chance as anyone. I don't doubt his skill, but I doubt the quality of the car his team can provide right now.