On This Day in 2003: Montoya Wins at Monaco
Twenty-three years ago today, Juan Pablo Montoya won the 2003 Monaco Grand Prix. The date was June 1, 2003, and the Colombian delivered the second victory of his Formula 1 career.
It was also Williams' first win around the streets of Monte Carlo in two decades, since Keke Rosberg took the chequered flag in 1983.
A Crucial Start
Ralf Schumacher started from pole position, his second career pole. Montoya lined up third on the grid, behind Kimi Räikkönen's McLaren.
The start was the turning point. Ralf made a slow getaway, and Räikkönen hesitated, unsure if the pole-sitter was alongside him. Montoya saw his chance. He swept past the Finn before the first corner and moved up to second.
From there, the two Williams cars pulled away from the rest of the field.
The Pit Stop That Sealed It
The race turned at the first round of pit stops. Ralf Schumacher pitted on lap 21. Montoya stayed out for one more lap and pushed hard, setting a lap of 1:15.166, faster than his teammate's pole time. When Montoya emerged from the pits, he was ahead of Ralf. He never gave the lead back.
Räikkönen finished second, just 0.602 seconds behind Montoya, after chasing the Williams closely for the last part of the race. Michael Schumacher completed the podium in third, a further 1.7 seconds back.
Big Win for Montoya and Williams
"I think BMW and Williams did a fantastic job and the Michelin tyres behaved brilliantly all the day. It's really good. Everybody needed this. Ralf got the pole yesterday, I got the win today," Montoya said after the race.
The victory was Montoya's first since the 2001 Italian Grand Prix, while the team's last win had come at the 2002 Malaysian Grand Prix with Ralf Schumacher. Williams had gone 21 races without a victory before Montoya broke the streak in Monaco.
Montoya also completed two legs of the motorsport triple crown with this Monaco win, as he had won the 2000 Indianapolis 500.
The result also tightened the championship battle. Räikkönen extended his lead to four points over Michael Schumacher, while Montoya moved up to fifth in the standings with 25 points.
For Williams, it was a return to winning ways at a circuit where overtaking is nearly impossible, and track position is everything. Montoya held off Räikkönen for the last 20 laps, keeping his rival just close enough but never close enough to pass.
Juan Pablo Montoya - Career Details
| First F1 race | 2001 Australian GP (Williams) |
|---|---|
| First F1 win | 2001 Italian GP (Williams) |
| Last F1 win | 2005 Brazilian GP (McLaren) |
| Final F1 race | 2006 US GP (McLaren) |
| F1 wins | 7 (94 starts) |
Related: 2003 F1 championship standings on F1-Fansite
See also:
More on 1 June
F1-Fansite has 11 more entries for 1 June.
2 F1 Fan comments on “On This Day in 2003: Montoya Wins at Monaco”
💬 Join the conversation — see the latest comments from F1 fans →
lots of high quality sky interviews regarding this i have no doubt
The venue is too confined for racing these vehicles to be meaningful.
Could I suggest skateboards and clubs.