Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Juan Pablo Montoya put on a show in his first stock-car race, leading the first nine laps, making a sterling save to avoid a spin and rallying from 36th in the final 40 laps to finish third. Frank Kimmel triumphed in a race shortened 13 laps by darkness, but Montoya scored a valuable and successful lesson in the first major test of his much-anticipated transition from Formula One to NASCAR. The Colombian will start racing in the Nextel Cup Series full time next season for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates [#42 Texaco Dodge], and the Daytona 500 will mark his next start in a restrictor-plate race akin to those at Talladega. "I think what I learned today is nice," Montoya said. "It's definitely necessary to come here. You've got to live it and experience it. All the Cup guys are here, and they can see this. It's all about getting experience and playing smart. If you don't bring the car home, it doesn't matter. You have to be at the right place at the right time." The 31-year-old acquitted himself well in the 2.66-mile superspeedway's finicky draft, where choosing the wrong lane or making a rash move can result in the loss of several positions. He swung past polesitter Bobby Gerhart and into the lead out of Turn 2 on the first lap and fended off several challenges in the opening laps.(USA Today, also see more on the ARCAracing.com site)
