Montoya, team need to find a way to finish first

Remember when Juan Montoya busted into NASCAR's Cup Series ranks?

Remember how his arrival was celebrated? How it was generally agreed that big-time success was only a matter of time for this great driver who previously had won the Indianapolis 500 and a CART open-wheel championship, not to mention the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix in the Formula One series?

What happened to that guy?

After arguably blowing his second consecutive Brickyard 400 Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Montoya remains winless on ovals 20 races into his fourth full Cup season. He has only one victory overall, taken on the road course at Sonoma in his rookie season in 2007. His winless streak has reached 166 races.

To offer some comparisons, four-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson won three races in his first full season and by the end of his fourth season, had won a total of 18 while never finishing further than fifth in the final points standings. It took Jeff Gordon, another four-time champion, into his second season before he won a race -- but then he won twice, and by the end of his fourth season he had visited Victory Lane a total of 19 times.

Perhaps it is grossly unfair to compare the underachieving Montoya with these future NASCAR Hall-of-Famers, however.

Montoya vs. McMurray

So let's compare him to another who makes more sense -- his current Earnhardt Ganassi Racing teammate, Jamie McMurray. Here is a guy who won his first race in only his second series start in 2002 while subbing for the injured Sterling Marlin in a Chip Ganassi-owned car, then went 166 starts over the next four-plus seasons before winning again in a Jack Roush ride.

That didn't prove to be a career-turning event, either. After winning for Roush for the first time in 2007, McMurray didn't win again until last fall at Talladega -- breaking another 86-race winless streak after he already had been told he would be shuffled out the Roush Fenway Racing door at season's end.

But here's the thing: since then McMurray has won twice more, and he's won NASCAR's biggest races. Teamed back up with owner Ganassi after four years of mostly aimless wandering in the overcrowded Roush garage, he took the season-opening Daytona 500 to start this year and now has backed it up with Sunday's stirring victory in the Brickyard 400. That gives him five career wins and gives McMurray and his team confidence that, when given the opportunity, he can close the deal at the end of any race.

The No. 42 Chevrolet team of Montoya apparently lacks that belief essential to becoming a breakthrough team, and now, at least for the remainder of this already lost season, it seems likely to get worse before it can get better.

As McMurray's stock in the No. 1 Chevy continues to rise, Montoya's legendary status as a talented driver of all things with four wheels continues to plummet at least as it relates to stock cars. He often has fast machines, but rarely is able to coax the finishes out of them necessary to make himself relevant and currently sits 22nd in the points standings.

Ganassi insisted after Sunday's race that Montoya "probably is over it already. ... I'm sure he's mad, but he's probably over it. It's racing. This is what he does for a living."

Maybe. And maybe not.

Not all Juan's fault

To be fair, Sunday's debacle at Indy was not all Montoya's fault -- although it was all his fault a year ago when he also dominated the race, only to give it away by speeding on pit road during his final pit stop. Starting from the pole Sunday, Montoya once again led more laps than any other car at Indy. Once again, it came down to the final pit stop with him leading the race.

From great to tragic

With 11 laps remaining, Juan Montoya went from race contender to a heap of scrap metal.

• Watch the crash

This time, it could be argued that crew chief Brian Pattie blew it and not Montoya. Pattie called for four tires when the six cars who exited pit road in front of the No. 42 took only two.

When he got back in line on the race track in seventh with 19 laps remaining, Montoya came on the radio and candidly admitted: "We'll know in 15 or 20 minutes if we made the right call."

It took less time than that for them to realize that they hadn't.

Even though it appeared he had plenty of time to make up the lost ground, he started fading immediately after the restart and eventually ended up in the wall. Was it a bad set of tires? Was he upset over Pattie's obviously wrong call and unable to regroup and get what he could like a real pro should have -- probably would have -- done?

It's hard to say. After getting knocked out of the race, an understandably frustrated Montoya stormed off without talking to reporters.

That left it to McMurray to carry the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates banner -- which he did so, proudly, all the way to Victory Lane. That's a place that has grown strangely unfamiliar to Juan Montoya, who may now be left wondering, along with the rest of us who apparently misjudged his ability to drive in this series, when or if he'll ever get there again.

He can look to his teammate for inspiration. Though it may not seem like it, both McMurray and Montoya are only 34 years old. They have lots of years left to race -- and McMurray is living proof that it can be a mistake to give up on a driver who, even if he currently is struggling, has shown potential.

Or as minority owner Felix Sabates said Sunday: "The guy who has to feel like an idiot right now is Jack Roush. He's the one who let [McMurray] go."

No one is suggesting Montoya should go anywhere. After all, he made the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship only a year ago and finished eighth in points even without winning a race.

But the next time Montoya is going somewhere fast, he needs work with his team to figure out a way to finally finish first.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.

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