Juan Pablo Montoya just dropped a bombshell about his F1 career – he turned down Red Bull Racing, and he’s got some strong opinions about why that was the right call.
The Colombian racing star says Red Bull made him an offer, but he wasn’t impressed. “They offered me two pesos,” he laughed during his recent Montoya’s podcast appearance. But it wasn’t just about the money.
“They would have burnt me,” Montoya explained, pointing to what he sees as Red Bull’s pattern of chewing up and spitting out drivers who don’t immediately deliver results.
He had options back then. Three different racing series were calling his name – F1, IndyCar, and NASCAR. But staying in F1 didn’t make sense anymore.
“The only thing I really needed in F1 was to be a champion,” he said. “And there wasn’t an opportunity to be in a car to be a champion.”
Looking back, his instincts might have been right. It took Red Bull four years to start winning races after their offer to him.
“By the time Red Bull was ready to fight for championships, they probably would have blamed me for any problems and replaced me with someone else,” Montoya said. “That’s just how F1 works.”
He points to David Coulthard as the perfect example. The Scottish driver took the seat Montoya passed on, spending three years with Red Bull and managing just two podium finishes. His best championship finish? Tenth place.
“What did Coulthard do at Red Bull? Coulthard took the seat that was mine, if I wanted it,” Montoya said. The Colombian’s tone suggested he has zero regrets about his decision.
