Juan Pablo Montoya’s Pursuit of Racing Immortality | IndyCar

Very few drivers have accomplished what Juan Montoya has in his career.

Every driver dreams of winning the ultimate prize, whether it is the Indianapolis 500 or the Daytona 500. The 24 Hours of Le Mans or the Monaco Grand Prix. Winning just one of these, or a season championship would be a career highlight for most drivers.

Graham Hill is the only person that has ever been able to achieve the Triple Crown of motorsports. Winning the three most prestigious races in the world requires an incredible amount of talent, preparation, and luck. Montoya and Fernando Alonso are close, having each won two of the three races. Both have also driven for McLaren at Indianapolis.

Familiarity is the name of the game this time around for Arrow McLaren. The team has the same three drivers this month as they had last May. With added experience and better chemistry, this could be the year they get back to victory lane at Indianapolis.

This three-car team does not have a ton of experience at Indy, with just five starts between Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist. After failing to qualify in 2019 with Carlin Racing, O’Ward has been sensational in his two starts with McLaren. The 22-year old finished 6th in 2020 as a rookie and 4th last year, after leading 17 laps.

Rosenvist has finished 28th, 12th, and 27th in his three starts; the first two driving for Chip Ganassi Racing. He has led laps in all three races but understands that he still has much to learn about finding the winning formula. That is where Montoya comes in, as the team will lean on him when it comes to setting up their cars.

“I think being two cars is a strong thing for us sometimes,” said Rosenqvist. “We have a lot of good people split only over two cars so it feels like a very focused program. But sometimes you definitely miss having another entry, so you can bounce your feedback off a third driver.”

Montoya’s vast bank of knowledge and talent are definitely welcomed, but it is his leadership that…