Formula 1 and IndyCar legend Juan Pablo Montoya will make his return to the NASCAR Cup Series for the first time since 2014 with 23XI Racing, the team owned by Michael Jordan.
Montoya will drive for 23XI Racing at Watkins Glen in the second of the playoff events in a one-off return for the 48-year-old.
The Colombian made his NASCAR debut in 2006 after leaving F1 and McLaren-Mercedes after the United States Grand Prix.
He won at Sonoma in 2007 and Watkins Glen in 2010 but never claimed a championship in the series while racing full-time for Chip Ganassi.
Juan Pablo Montoya is eagerly anticipating a return to NASCAR
Montoya had varying levels of success throughout his motorsport career, winning two Indy 500’s for Chip Ganassi Racing and Team Penske.
He endured a mixed spell in Formula 1, bursting onto the scene with BMW Williams in 2001 with an audacious pass on Michael Schumacher in Brazil before becoming disillusioned at McLaren.
Montoya is now looking forward to returning to NASCAR and said, via Autosport: “I’m looking forward to getting back in a Cup car and racing at Watkins Glen – a track I really enjoy and had the chance to experience earlier in my career.”
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Steve Lauletta, president of 23XI Racing, hailed Montoya as “a world-class driver” who has “won in everything he’s driven.”
Lauletta added: “He will be a great closer to the 50th-anniversary celebration we’ve had in NASCAR with the #50 Mobil 1 Toyota.”
Montoya will be joining an incredibly competitive field and a title battle that may go down to the wire at Phoenix Raceway in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race.
What has Juan Pablo Montoya been up to since retiring from full-time motorsport?
The Colombian, who won seven Formula 1 races with Williams and McLaren – including a famous win at Monaco in 2003 – has been focusing on his son Sebastian Montoya’s racing career since retiring from full-time motorsport.
Seb Montoya is currently racing in the FIA Formula 3 championship and sits 15th in the standings with just one round to go at Monza.
The Campos driver has endured a difficult year, scoring no points in Monaco, Spain and Austria after finishing sixth in the Feature Race in Australia.
Spa-Francorchamps yielded better results with a second place in the Feature Race, his first podium of the season.