Montoya and the Daytona 500

[MAX_THRUST]

Ok he wins the Indy 500 first time out with Ganassi, He wins the Daytona 24 hours first time out with Ganassi, surely he can't do the Daytona 500 1st time out with Ganassi or can he?????

I'm going to be watching NASCAR this year because Montoya is racing. It's not that I'm a massive fan of his, but I find him fascinating to watch as a driver and in interviews. Plain speaking, hard charging.

Surely he can't do Daytona and win all three blue ribbon events. Hope I haven't jinxed him!!!

What's your opinions???

[Alexamateo]

Montoya's going to be good, but he's still new to driving heavy front-engined cars. He has qualified well, (4th fastest) but the plate tracks are just different and you'll see cars that qualified 30th race extremely well because of the draft. He also drives for Ganassi, which has not been a premier level team in Nascar, although the driver he replaced, Casey Mears did finish second last year. In the end, the newness of the cars and the newness of drafting in a big pack will prevent him from winning, not to mention just how difficult it is to win any given race in Nascar. 13 different drivers won races last year, and not on that list were talented drivers like Carl Edwards, Mark Martin, Ryan Newman, Casey Mears, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte, and Robby Gordon. With the exception of Mears, all of this list has won races and even Championships (Jarrett, Labonte).

If he finishes in the top 15 he should consider his day a success. Will he win this year? He is capable of course, and I would like to think Ganassi is turning it around somewhat. He will definitely threaten on the road courses, but then again, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are tops. It's going to be tough to beat them. Who knows, that's why they line up up and race them!

[MAX_THRUST]

I didn't know he had qualified fourth....good showing. I'm hoping we wil get some coverage in the UK on channel 5 or Eurosport....Thanks .

[cgs]

qualifying doesn't mean much about the driver at Daytona. the entire lap is foot flat to the floor and so the driver really has very little input into the lap. however, racing at a SS is all about skill and working the draft. you could have the fast car out there but if you get hung up all by yourself on the high side, you're goign to find yourself in the back of the field pretty quick.

[Alexamateo]

I didn't know he had qualified fourth....good showing. I'm hoping we wil get some coverage in the UK on channel 5 or Eurosport....Thanks .

FYI Max, the two biggest tracks in NASCAR use restrictor plates to reduce the airflow into the motor and cut power and speed. That's the reason for the big packs, no one has the power to pull away. Because of the draft, they'll actually race faster than they qualified. A good qualifying speed does not necessarily mean they'll run well in the race as the draft is paramount for the 4 plate races.

Also, for this race only, there are two qualifying races Thursday, JPM's starting position in the 500 will be determined by how well he finishes there. It will also be the first indicator as to how he's going to do in the draft. He did do well in the ARCA race at Talladega last fall (also a restrictor plate race), but he had far superior equipment than most of the field.

[wedge]

Depends how well he goes in the 125s. He has made a bad habit of kissing the wall last year. Daytona is a narrow track - three wide is possible but expect lane drafting all day. I just hope JPM's infamous patience doesn't wear thin and cause a wreck.

I'm expecting a top-15 finish, top-10 would be excellent but I'd be more impressed if it was 6th/7th place finish or higher.

[muggle not]

Monyoya's best shot at a win, surprise, is at Sonoma or Watkins Glen. I think he has an escellent chance of winning at the Glen.

[Mark in Oshawa]

Muggle, he will find it tough, for Ron Fellows has been racing there in NASCAR's for a while, and won there with Busch 3 times, but cant beat the Cup Regulars. JPM should be in the top 10 there, and that would be as far as I will predict. He is good, but driving a Cup car is an experience thing. IT will take him about a year to be ready to win a race anywhere.

As for Daytona, all he has to do is survive in the Duels and he is in, which is the main thing. Qualfying fourth for the Daytona 500 means less than fourth anywhere else.....

[Sparky1329]

I think Juan can win the 500. If he can avoid "The Big One", stay off the walls and find himself a drafting partner it's possible. I'm not a fan of plate racing but the races are often a crap shoot.

[harvick#1]

If those Ganassi Dodges run like Busch's Shootout car, then hes got a great chance, but if he wins the 500, that would be awesome as winning the two biggest races in 1 start each