Montoya learning fast way

Interview: Michael Schumacher might have a huge lead in the title race but Juan Pablo Montoya won't give up the chase, he tells Maurice Hamilton.

Juan Pablo Montoya likes to talk. You are left in no doubt about that during the media briefings held regularly outside the Williams motorhome.

The Colombian, in Montoya-label T-shirt and jeans, will rock back in his chair and chatter in the same animated style that characterises his driving. He will smile, laugh, shrug his shoulders and grimace in a way that does not need words, But, above all, he will tell it like it is.

'Michael? You've gotta respect everybody,' says Montoya. 'If they race hard against you, you've got to race hard against them. It's very simple; if there's respect both ways, there's no problem. To beat these guys, you've got to be smarter than them. That's what Michael is; he's smarter than anyone else. I haven't quite got that yet. I'm learning that going quick is not just driving flat out 100 per cent of the time.'

Montoya refers to the world champion as 'Michael' simply because the preferred use of 'Schumacher' would create confusion. Ralf Schumacher drives the other Williams-BMW and you get the feeling that Montoya does not view his team-mate as seriously as the man in Ferrari number one. Not that he is overly concerned about Michael in the first place.

It is an unmistakable but rare brand of confidence that makes Montoya popular, if only because it creates the impression that Schumacher can be defeated. Every competitor on the grid at Silverstone today will claim to have the beating of the reigning champion in a fair fight in equal cars.

They have to say that because they are among the best 22 drivers in the world. The difference is, Montoya truly believes it. Whether he is capable of carrying that out on a regular basis is a continuing point of discussion. Gerhard Berger, the former F1 driver who heads BMW's competitions department, can see Montoya's problem more accurately than most.

'The trouble is, Juan does not have the same level of experience as Michael,' says Berger. 'In terms of talent, he and Ralf are more or less on the same level. We've seen already that they can race with the Ferrari. But Michael has the experience that comes with winning four championships and more than 50 grands prix. That means he doesn't have the same pressure. He is much more relaxed because he has nothing to prove and that makes him even stronger.'

Berger's view is backed up by the sparse statistics marked against Montoya's name. On the one hand, it is necessary to double-check the figures to confirm that Montoya has won just one grand prix. On the other, the records will also show that he has been in F1 racing for only 18 months.

None the less, his personal tally does not compute with racing for one of the top teams and having started the past three races from pole position - a spot he occupies again today.

Montoya retired from all three; twice with mechanical failure and once after badly-worn tyres contributed to a collision with David Coulthard as they fought for third place in Germany. Only once did Montoya show any sign of frustration, when he said a brief farewell to the team in Canada and left before the end of the race.

'That was most unusual for Juan,' says team boss, Sir Frank Williams. 'As soon as he got back to the pits [following an engine failure while about to challenge Schumacher's Ferrari for the lead] he said cheerio, shrugged his shoulders in the way we all know quite well by now, and off he went. Normally he's handled his disappointments really well. He's been quite happy to stay for hours afterwards and just be with the team, and then feel better by the end of the race.

'It's a sign of his fundamental nature, which is not happy-go-lucky - he's very serious about his racing - but he's an up-front, together individual who enjoys life. But the thing we've noticed is the sense of fun is mixed with a maturity that has become more and more evident. It translates into his driving, because there are far fewer mistakes.'

Williams is referring to the silly driving errors that eliminated Montoya from two races in succession last year. Arguably, there has not been one since. Williams considers Montoya's clash of wheels while defending third place two weeks ago as a motor racing incident; one of those things that happens when two determined drivers are arguing over a place on the podium.

It is a view that was not shared by Coulthard. The Scotsman accused Montoya of being excessively stubborn by jeopardising the chances of both drivers when he knew his tyres were finished and Coulthard's McLaren was undeniably the faster car. It was proof, said Coulthard, of why Montoya has only won a single grand prix.

Others would say the refusal to give way (without resorting to dubious tactics) is precisely why his team and an increasingly large swathe of blue-hatted supporters in the spectator enclosures appreciate Montoya.

'That's the thing about Juan,' says Williams. 'He simply loves a fight. He's very exciting to watch because he brings that natural exuberance with him into the car. But he's also learning to channel it. He's thinking more constructively. When he finds he is in trouble with his car in a qualifying session, for instance, he will work his way out of it with his engineer and the data. That's something he has learned to utilise far more during the past 12 months.'

Five pole positions this year - some of them seemingly drawn from nowhere but within a deep well of innate car control - are proof of the education that comes from working with a team that was started not long after Montoya was born in Bogotá on 20 September 1975.

'Montreal was a good pole position lap,' says Montoya. 'I came in afterwards and said there was not a single tenth of a second left in me or the car. But Germany was different. I put in a time and then Ralf went quicker. When I saw his time I said to my engineer, "I can't go quicker than that." He said, "No, no. We've got two more runs and we're making more changes to the car." Right enough, it was better. If you make the right change to the set-up, you can get so much more out of the car. It's amazing. The only problem is, you don't get any championship points for qualifying.'

Montoya remains convinced that, had he finished the past three races, he would have collected at least 20 points. The shortfall has not lessened his motivation this weekend as yesterday's stunning qualifying lap proved.

'Qualifying on pole is obviously a big advantage,' says Montoya, 'but you can't really think, "OK, now I'm going to win." You've got to see what you've got in the race and make the best of it, particularly with tyres.

'Just because Michael is miles ahead in the championship doesn't mean I'm going to give up. You can't really call winning pole so many times "giving up", can you? The motivation comes from trying to close the gap and learning to get more out of the car. Just take each race as it comes and have fun.'

And talk about it. Montoya has impressed the Williams team with his ability to chat on the radio while lapping quickly; further indication of a natural ability that allows spare mental capacity for thinking about other aspects of the race. The priority for Williams, BMW and Michelin this afternoon is to keep Montoya talking for the entire 60 laps.

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