Formula 1

Montoya welcomes new opposition

Juan Pablo Montoya certainly shook up F1 in his debut season last year and looks set to do the same again his year, after his battle with Michael Schumacher in the season opener at Melbourne last weekend. The two were head to head for a few laps ...

Edited: Apr 15, 2002, 11:45 PM

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Juan Pablo Montoya certainly shook up F1 in his debut season last year and looks set to do the same again his year, after his battle with Michael Schumacher in the season opener at Melbourne last weekend.

The two were head to head for a few laps of what some are already saying was the best bit of racing we've seen in years; ducking and weaving, sliding around the track and braking ever later, they gave a great performance before Schumacher finally took the lead again and both said afterwards they really enjoyed it.

Not only did Montoya tangle with Schumacher, he also had a fight with McLaren's young star Kimi Raikkonen. Raikkonen, like Montoya, impressed in his debut season last year and was hastily snapped up by McLaren from Sauber. The Finn joined Montoya on the podium in Melbourne, his first step up to it, after finishing third in what was an impressive debut for his new team.

The two had a brief battle for second and Montoya said he welcomed the competition: "I think it's nice to have a new guy up the front and he's (Raikkonen) an aggressive guy," he said. "He's a tough racer and it's going to make it very interesting."

Montoya is known for his own aggressive driving style, the Colombian has pulled off some daring moves that others might not have risked. When asked if he welcomed another aggressive driver such as Raikkonen, he grinned and replied: "I don't know. I'm a nice guy."

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