JPM to McLaren confirmed for 2005

[Roaming]

<br>
03 Z4 3.0 TiSi/Dream Red/Black 6 Spd
03 325i Steel Blue/Sand 5 Spd

[Vu999]

by Maclaren will keep JPM off the market.

Interesting to see in the coming days why JPM is leaving: money, structure, insecurity?

[AndyO]

Will BMW sign the Chinese driver to get exposure in the Chinese market

[defcon1racing]

<a href="http://f1.racing-live.com/en/headlines/news/detail/031117121656.shtml">http://f1.racing-live.com/en/headlines/news/detail/031117121656.shtml</a>

<b>Team McLaren Mercedes is pleased to announce that Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya (28) will join the team for the 2005 Formula One season.

Juan Pablo Montoya won the International Formula 3000 Championship in 1998 and became the youngest ever CART Champion in 1999 and in the following year he took victory in the prestigious Indianapolis 500 race in his first attempt. He graduated to Formula One in 2001, has claimed three Formula One victories, 11 pole positions and finished third in this years' World Championship.

The Team McLaren Mercedes team will confirm the full 2005 driver line- up at a later date but the team's 2004 Championship challenge will be lead by David Coulthard and Kimi Raikkonen.

“We want to win races and World Championships, and in order to do so we have to plan for the future whilst applying every effort in the short term”, commented Ron Dennis, CEO and Chairman, TAG McLaren Group. “The opportunity to sign a talent like Juan Pablo was too good to miss, and there is already a considerable amount of anticipation within our team about 2005.”

“Juan Pablo has achieved a considerable amount of success in his career and we are certain that he will add to this with Team McLaren Mercedes. We are certainly looking forward to seeing what he can do in one of our cars and I believe that it's a prospect that can't fail to excite Formula One fans around the world. However until that happens we will be focusing all efforts on our 2004 Championship challenge.”

“Juan Pablo has become well established in International motor racing within a short time and will fit well into our team”, said Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes- Benz Motorsport. “We have been convinced of Juan Pablo's great talent since he drove a Mercedes-Benz C-Class touring car in the ITC round at Silverstone in 1996.”

“I am thrilled to be joining Team McLaren Mercedes”, said Juan Pablo Montoya. “The team is consistently a strong World Championship contender and has a fantastic heritage. It's a great opportunity for me and I'm really looking forward to the first time I will be able to drive one of their cars. To join them is an amazing challenge and experience which I plan to fully enjoy.”

“However, my short term aim is to concentrate 100 percent on winning the 2004 World Championship.”

Latest 15 stories, here...Renault F1 Team tests rising...Interview with Heikki...A test for Piquet and Rosberg...McLaren confirms Montoya for...Macau GP: Lapierre wins the...Macau GP: first round goes to...Ralf Schumacher eagerly...Macau GP: Fabio Carbone takes...The first mock-up takes...Takuma Sato talks about the...The Circuit de Catalunya edits...Luciano Burti is back at...Minardi launches Arab driver...A meeting with Thiéry...Is Bahrain safe ?
Team McLaren Mercedes
Press Release
</b>

I, for one, am sorry to see JPM leave BMW.Williams.

<br><b><FONT FACE=courier new>Shane</FONT></b><FONT FACE=courier new><b><FONT COLOR=0099FF>
def.</FONT><FONT COLOR=0033FF>con</FONT><FONT COLOR=CC0000>.one</FONT></b> _{<b><FONT COLOR=CC0000>R</FONT></b>acing}</FONT>
<FONT COLOR=999999 FONT FACE=courier new>02 Sterling Gray M3 Coupe</FONT>
<img src=http://members.roadfly.com/defcon1racing/advan3.jpg></a><IMG SRC=http://members.roadfly.com/defcon1racing/14wks_sm2.jpg ALT=signature></a>

"Our engine is the measure of all things in Formula One" - Gerhard Berger

[dinan540i]

I find it gross this stuff is announced while a driver still has a season to race. As if it wasn't already hard enough to route for the arrogant prick, now this.

[email protected] for being too cheap and stubborn to pay for JPM. Who are we going to get. Personally, I don't find any of the available drivers to be attractive. They should sign me.

[AC]

at McLaren he will be a certain numero dos. <br><img src="http://homepage.mac.com/booboo/.Pictures/axis.jpg"height=180 width=180>

[Andrew]

Please don't be Jacques.

[dinan540i]

With their budget I doubt either will be running at any traceable disadvantage to each other. Regardless, it's going to be a treat to watch them go head-to-head.

[dinan540i]

[AC]

...it's a matter of winning the team over, one way or another. MS is a genius in this respect...JPM needs to learn that kind of politics.<br><img src="http://homepage.mac.com/booboo/.Pictures/axis.jpg"height=180 width=180>

[Dave B]

switch of drivers? Why would they annnounce a year ahead of time? Wonder how DC and Frank Williams feel about their current lineup for 2004. DC would probaly rather go somplace where he is "wanted" and Frank would probably rather be calling the shots himself. Jees, lets give JPM a whole year to learn more secrets of the FW-25(?) and take them over to Ron Dennis.
Wouldn't suprize me to see some switching before OZ.

[Paesan]

Ferrari proves that a clear #1 and #2 wins championships. Splitting points between KR and JPM will only allow Micheal to win championships more easily. I can't wait to see wRONg Dennis face when his two drivers collide into each other, that would make me and any Ferrari fan more happy than ever.

[dinan540i]

True, but we're not dealing with BAR-Honda here. Maybe it's me, but McLaren strikes me as the sort of team that's all business and is not going to favor one driver or another cause of their personality. I can't see Ron Dennis allowing non-sense like that within his camp.

[dinan540i]

LOL, you think JPM has the brain let alone the access to the relay anything of value to McLaren. I doubt Montoya is ever in the lab looking indepth at anything nor would he understand any of it if he did. Besides, he's going to McLaren, not Minardi. Teams don't just tack on little bits here and there, it's an integrated package. What might work on the Williams probably won't mesh with the McLaren package.

[dinan540i]

get JPM in the McLaren by this season as no doubt an akward situation has arisen and Williams and Head do not like JPM. Some have said FW and PH wanted JPM gone more than he wanted to leave.

[defcon1Racing]

<a href="http://insider.speedtv.com/viewtopic.php?t=21921">http://insider.speedtv.com/viewtopic.php?t=21921</a>

<b>LOL, Supersonic, you think JPM has the brain let alone the access to the relay anything of value to McLaren? I doubt Montoya is ever in the lab looking indepth at anything nor would he understand any of it if he did. Besides, he's going to McLaren, not Minardi. Teams don't just tack on little bits here and there, it's an integrated package. What might work on the Williams probably won't mesh with the McLaren package.
</b>

[dinan540i]

[dinan540i]

yep! 98 is my racecar number and cheater an old screen name.

[dinan540i]

[AC]

...that will make a difference. Like, will his race engineers like him or thing he's a [Oops!] like at Williams.... will he be good at doing all the corollary sponsor PR..... you know what I mean. Plus, from a purely market prospective JPM is not exactly regarded as the hottest commodity, while he's not moving to McL for peanuts, he's not getting top dollar either.


<a href="http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns12171.html">here's an article on one of the few no BS f1 sites (as opposed to PlanetF1)</a><br><img src="http://homepage.mac.com/booboo/.Pictures/axis.jpg"height=180 width=180>