Montoya says he is committed to Ganassi
LONG POND, Pa. – Juan Pablo Montoya, who is on his third crew chief this season, says he is getting more settled with new crew chief Brian Pattie.
A few weeks after venting frustration over his crew chief situation, Montoya said don’t translate that frustration into his looking to leave Chip Ganassi Racing, which brought him into Sprint Cup racing full time last year.
“People have got to understand that I’ve got a long commitment to Chip [Ganassi],” Montoya said Friday after qualifying at Pocono Raceway. “This is where I am and this is where I am going to be for a couple of years.”
The former Formula One driver started the year with Donnie Wingo as crew chief and then Wingo and Reed Sorenson crew chief Jimmy Elledge swapped positions in mid-April. Ganassi then released Elledge in mid-May, a move that Montoya wasn’t pleased with.
“The main idea when things like that happen and you’re not part of it is to really get everybody on the same page and for everybody really to understand that it’s not about who is more important or who is the boss,” Montoya said. “It’s about getting the job done and we’ve got to do whatever it takes to get it done.”
Can new crew chief Brian Pattie, who took over after Elledge left, get the job done for Montoya, who enters the Pocono race 17th in points?
“So far, Brian has done an amazing job for me,” Montoya said. “It’s pretty funny because we’ve both got quite a temper and it’s funny to watch. We’ve got a good relationship building it up, so it should be good.”
