When Juan Pablo Montoya’s perfect NASCAR storyline got ruined by a speeding penalty

Juan Pablo Montoya has competed in various motorsports disciplines like NASCAR, F1, Champ Car, IMSA SportsCar Championship and IndyCar Series. His NASCAR career was marked by moments of brilliance and heartbreak.

One of the most heartbreaking moments was during the 2009 Brickyard 400 (formerly known as Allstate 400 at the Brickyard) at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where a speeding penalty ruined his hopes of deserving victory.

Montoya, a former F1 and NASCAR driver, was competing for Chip Ganassi Racing (formerly Earnhardt Ganassi Racing) in the 2009 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Driving the #42 Chevrolet, he was seeking to become the first driver to win both the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400, a feat that would cement his legacy across multiple racing disciplines.

Juan Pablo Montoya was dominating the Brickyard 400, leading 116 of the first 124 laps, demonstrating his control over the race and setting a blistering pace.

With 35 laps remaining, Montoya, who had a comfortable lead and seemed poised to secure a historic victory, but a routine pit stop changed the course of the race.

Montoya was caught speeding on pit road by close margins with 26 laps to go. NASCAR penalized him for speeding on pit road, a violation that requires him to go down pit road again for a pass-through penalty and effectively ended his chances of winning.

Juan Pablo Montoya finished the race in 11th place, a disappointing result given his earlier dominance. Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson went on to win the prestigious crown jewel race after holding off hard-charging Mark Martin in the closing laps.

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Juan Pablo Montoya was not happy with NASCAR’s speeding penalty decision

After that decision, the Columbian driver lost his temper and expressed his frustration and disbelief over the radio.

“If they do this to me, I'm going to kill them. There's no way. I was on the green (dash light),” Montoya said on his radio (as reported via ESPN).

Following the race, speaking to the media, Montoya remained adamant that he hadn’t exceeded the speed limit on pit road (as reported via ESPN):

“Thank you, NASCAR, for screwing my day. We had it in the bag, and they screwed us because I was not speeding. I swear on my children and my wife.”

Juan Pablo Montoya was widely regarded as one of the most versatile and talented drivers in motorsport history. He has won three races in NASCAR, seven in Formula 1, three in the IMSA SportsCar Championship and five in the IndyCar Series.

Moreover, the 48-year-old also won the 1998 International Formula 3000 Championship, the 1999 CART FedEx Championship Series Championship, the 2017 Race of Champions Champion of Championship and the 2019 IMSA SportsCar Championship.