NASCAR Legend Reveals Glenn Watkins’ Race Return Mindset – “Payback is…
NASCAR and Juan Pablo Montoya are back in the Cup Series next week at Watkins Glen International. At the age of 48, the racing icon will make a special appearance for 23XI Racing, driving the No. 50 Toyota Camry XSE.
In an exclusive interview with The Athletic, Montoya shared his thoughts and strategy for the coming weeks. He revealed:
“The thing is, in NASCAR, you get into every weekend because you have a defense. Other races, you rub and pull people out of the way and stuff, but that’s normal. In NASCAR, there’s a difference between give and take, you have to understand that and respect that, because it’s worth it.
“No, I compete directly with people and expect people to compete with me – and if they don’t, I don’t. It’s normal. It’s pretty simple. If you want to be ‘a’ I can be ‘a’ more. “If you want to be good, I want to be good.”
Montoya’s return is reminiscent of his illustrious career, which saw him compete with the best drivers of the 2000s, including drawing comparisons with seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher.
His forays into Formula 1, IndyCar and NASCAR are marked by marquee wins such as winning the 2000 Indianapolis 500 as a rookie and winning at Sonoma Raceway in 2007.
Although Montoya isn’t the favorite to win at Watkins Glen, his record makes him a real threat to the other drivers in the race.
Montoya has been a fixture in IndyCar since his full-time debut in the Cup Series in 2014, continuing his association with the sport until 2022. He kept up with industry news and said:
“Not too much. I follow every F1 race, I do a podcast to make sure I’m still following. But let’s say maybe every day, I open a browser and look down the cars and see what happens, if there is any good news.
“The thing is, during the week you’ve heard a lot of stories, so what happens, you know, I like stories. Yes, I like to gossip. I spend hours on TikTok, but it’s not about competition.”
