Top 25 IndyCar drivers of all-time
By Asher Fair
Top IndyCar drivers of all-time: #24 – Juan Pablo Montoya
Juan Pablo Montoya belongs on this list due to what he has been able to do in IndyCar despite having never spent more than three consecutive seasons in the sport. To this day, the former NASCAR and Formula 1 driver has only ever driven full-time in five seasons of the top level of American open-wheel racing.
He won the 1999 CART championship as a rookie, winning seven of 20 races, and he went on to win the Indy 500 as a rookie the following year in his first official “IndyCar” start. His performance in that race remains one of the most dominant performances in the history of the race.
After 2000, he did not sit in an IndyCar cockpit again until 2014, when he returned in a full-time capacity. A penalty in the Indy 500 cost him a shot at the win, but 14 years after winning the race as a rookie, he posted a solid fifth place finish in his second try.
While he wasn’t nearly as dominant in 2015 as he was in 2000, Montoya became a two-time Indy 500 winner, rallying from 30th place following early contact under caution. By winning the race, he now holds the record for the most years between victories (15), despite the fact that he won it twice in his first three attempts.
Many thought his 2017 Indy 500 attempt would be his last, but he is set to return for another crack at the race in 2021. This attempt is slated to be his sixth.
Despite limited time in IndyCar, Montoya is a 15-time race winner, a champion and a two-time Indy 500 winner, and he could easily be a two-time champion if not for a tiebreaker that did not go his way in 2015.