Montoya Amazed At How 'Nobody Fights' Verstappen When He Is Coming From Behind
F1Thursday, 14 November 2024 at 22:01
Seven-time F1 Grand Prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya pointed out how "nobody" defends Max Verstappen when he's climbing up the field during the race.
The 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix was one of the best Grand Prix races in Max Verstappen's career. Starting from P17 after an unfortunate qualifying session, the triple World Champion won the Grand Prix by more than 19 seconds ahead of everyone.
Following the race weekend in Brazil, multiple former F1 drivers and pundits compared the 27-year-old Red Bull Racing F1 driver and his level of skill to all-time greats like Ayrton Senna or Michael Schumacher.
While there is no doubt that Verstappen's performance from Sao Paulo was one of the best that Formula 1 has seen, the seven-time Grand Prix winner, Juan Pablo Montoya, pointed out that almost none of the overtaken drivers tried to fight Verstappen. He told W Radio Colombia after the race in Brazill:
"It's a bit like with Michael when he was coming from behind. When that happened, people got out of the way."
"Look, Max had a super race, but nobody ever challenges him. Nobody fights him. Ocon, for the lead of the race, got behind, and that was it."
On his way from the P17 into the lead of the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix, the triple World Champion made ten overtakes in total.
Some of the drivers ahead of him didn't start the race - Lance Stroll and Alex Albon and he got past a few, including Lando Norris, George Russell, and Charles Leclerc, by not pitting ahead of the red flag.
Only two drivers throughout the whole Grand Prix put up a bit of resistance against the Red Bull Racing driver - Lewis Hamilton (who was either way quickly overtaken) and Leclerc.
On the other hand, it should be noted that the Dutchman surprised many of his opponents with his incredible dives down the inside from the huge distance on the wet track.
Even Oscar Piastri, in whose interest it was to defend Verstappen (to help Norris in the Championship), didn't manage to defend for long as Verstappen overtook him down the inside into the first corner on his first opportunity.
Nevertheless, Montoya suggests that F1 drivers seem to change their behavior on track based on who they are dealing with.
"But if it's someone else, they go for the kill. It's amazing how people race differently depending on who it is."
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