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Filed under: Juan Pablo Montoya, Sprint Cup

THE SEASON: Considering Juan Pablo Montoya's ever-improving level of performance during the past few seasons, the ex-F1 driver has left no doubt that if he has a competitive car, he can turn the page and become a driver to reckon with in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series.

That page -- or the the book, rather -- was thrown open in 2009.

Montoya easily had his most memorable performance of the season in one of NASCAR's crown jewel events -- the Brickyard 400 at the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Indy, of course, was home to another of Montoya moment, as he won the 1999 Indianapolis 500.

At Indy in 2009, Montoya had far and away the fastest car in the field. But after leading a commanding 116 laps, he was flagged for speeding on pit road during the final pit stop. He didn't have enough time to recover, and finished 11th.

 

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by Holly Cain

Filed under: Juan Pablo Montoya, Chase for the Sprint Cup

Lost in all the geriatric hope of 50-year old Mark Martin's incredible run at his first NASCAR championship and the possibility of Jimmie Johnson producing a historic fourth Sprint Cup Series title is the biggest stunner of the postseason. Or maybe not.

Juan Pablo Montoya is 65 points away from leading the championship standings.

The Colombian-born open wheel star wasn't a shoo-in pick to make the Chase for the Championship. The newly merged Earnhardt Ganassi team hadn't exactly established itself a Hendrick-slayer in the regular season and Montoya only clinched a spot in the 12-driver playoff field during the last possible race to do so.

Two races into the Chase, however, Montoya is ranked third and leading the likes of regular season champ Tony Stewart and one of NASCAR's all-time greatest Jeff Gordon.

But should we really be surprised? No.

Montoya Doubles as NASCAR's Outsider And Contender originally appeared on Motorsports FanHouse on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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by FanHouse Newswire

Filed under: Mark Martin, Sprint Cup, Hendrick Motorsports

BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) -- The most surprised person to find Mark Martin in Victory Lane at Michigan International Speedway was the driver himself.

The 50-year-old NASCAR star has run well but has had to deal with considerable bad luck this season. It looked like more of the same Sunday when the battery in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet began to fail before the halfway mark in the LifeLock 400 Sprint Cup race.

Martin turned off everything in the car that he could, nursing it as best he could. Then he realized the race was going to be a fuel economy run.

Mark Martin Wins LifeLock 400 originally appeared on Motorsports FanHouse on Sun, 14 Jun 2009 17:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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