A debate about the collision between Juan-Pablo Montoya and Michael Schumacher at Interlagos has been raging since Sunday and only now do we have all sides of the story… Williams technical director Patrick Head and BMW motorsport boss Gerhard Berger speak out – but not in high praise of their driver, Montoya.
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A debate about the collision between Juan-Pablo Montoya and Michael Schumacher at Interlagos has been raging since Sunday and only now do we have all sides of the story… Williams technical director Patrick Head and BMW motorsport boss Gerhard Berger speak out – but not in high praise of their driver, Montoya.
Judging from the reaction of CARtoday.com readers, opinion seems to be divided just about down the middle. Some readers believe that Montoya paid the price for his over-exuberance and excitable nature, but others say Schumacher has met his match and that only Ferrari’s massive influence in the sport saved the German from receiving a penalty for his involvement in the Turn 4 accident.
CARtoday.com reported yesterday that Montoya, who had started from pole, out-braked himself into the first corner of the opening lap. The Colombian then sought to regain the lead by slipstreaming the world champion down the long straight into Reta Oposta (Turn 4). Montoya jinked to the left and Schumacher did the same to block the Colombian’s move. Montoya then moved to the right and as Schumacher took the corner, the Williams clipped the rear of the Ferrari and lost its front wing.
Montoya’s response to Schumacher’s tactics – and vice versa – have been well documented. In addition, Ferrari’s sporting director, Jean Todt, and technical director, Ross Brawn, have both dismissed accusations that Schumacher was to blame for the clash. But, until now, the top personnel at Williams BMW have not had their say…
Unfortunately for the Colombian, Head has cast doubt on his assertion that Schumacher was at fault for the incident. "I don’t know, we’ll have to look at the film and make a judgement," Head was quoted as saying by . "But [Montoya] was the car behind, and it was Juan that was moving across to the right, but I think he was just too close. We need to look and see if there’s some footage from the top [of the cars] or something. But whatever it was, it destroyed his race."
Head added that Montoya’s clash could prove costly in the long run. "Basically, if you’re going to win a championship you don’t bump into other cars, that’s all there is to it," he said.
Meanwhile, Berger remains philosophical about the incident. The Austrian admitted that while Montoya had the tendency to take big chances, Schumacher was undoubtedly aware that Juan would be planning to attack with all his might on the first lap.
"Montoya is a real daredevil. This sport needs someone like him,” Berger said. “That’s why he is so popular in this scene – because in private he’s a nice guy and in the car, he gives everything he has. This is why we signed with him. Montoya has respect for his sport. He would never want to harm himself, or others. Michael knew that this attack would come in Brazil. He defended it with all his might. A racing accident."
The four-time world champion did his best to brush off Montoya’s remarks on Wednesday. "It’s easy to make rash remarks immediately after a race," Schumacher told . "The stewards certainly would have watched the incident several times and as they took no action, one can assume they saw things differently to Juan-Pablo."
