Former NASCAR, Indy, and Formula 1 Mario Andretti spoke about what was on his mind when it came to the Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya. The 46-year-old from Bogota has become one of the most important South American drivers in history and still remains a mighty force on the track and one of the best options for sports betting when it comes to racing. The winner of the 1978 Formula 1 Drivers Championship, spoke during the first Miami Grand Prix about the former Williams driver to Colombian newspaper El Tiempo in an exclusive interview.
Andretti said, “Montoya has been a very successful man”. He went on to say, “He taught us all with his versatility, he has won in Formula 1, he has won in sports cars, he has won in Indy, he has also triumphed in Nascar… so I think he has triumphed in all the great disciplines. There is no doubt that he loves the sport very much. Other racers decide to specialize in only one area of motorsports, but he has shown his talent in the various categories. He is a very complete driver. I always enjoyed following his career, he is a great guy”.
“He looks so good, he honestly doesn’t look [46 years old]”, commented the great champion on Montoya’s vitality and physical shape “Every time he goes out there, he is amazing. I’ve always liked his character, he has a great personality”. Andretti, who was at the Miami Grand Prix with Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi and the Colombian as ambassadors, joked about Montoya’s omnipresence: “The impact of Juan Pablo Montoya is huge. In Miami, for example, he is almost everywhere. Juan Pablo Montoya has everything to continue winning more titles in his career”.
Montoya may very well face his own 17-year-old son on the track who is part of the Telmex Claro team that races on the Italian Formula 4. Sebastián recently placed eighth place in the two Monza GP starts and was able to climb to the podium for being amongst the best of the rookies. The young driver is tenth of 37 drivers in the general classification.
Andretti also spoke about the work of his son Michael (who was teammates with Ayrton Senna during the 1993 Formula 1 season) about the work he’s carrying out to have their own Formula 1 team in 2024, Andretti Global. “We are working for that”, said the 82-year-old Andretti. “The idea is to be competing in a year and a half. We do not yet have official permission from the International Automobile Federation, but we are doing everything to make the dream come true”.
About what role he could take on in the organization, he was very relaxed: “I am very proud of Michael’s ambition, and I will support him in any way I can. I don’t need a job, but you know what? Nobody loves this sport more than me. So I’m committed and I love it”.
