Paul Jeffrey
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In an action packed and star studded two days of racing at the Miami Marlins Park stadium, former Williams and McLaren Grand Prix driver Juan Pablo Montoya secured individual Champion of Champions honours and team Germany the Nations Cup title at the 2017 Race of Champions event.
With stars from the world of Formula One, Indycar, NASCAR, Rallycross and Le Mans all competing for victory in the traditional end of season motorsports festival, it was left to IndyCar star and fan favourite Juan Pablo Montoya to wooh the crowds with an impressive display of driving ability as the 41-year-old Colombian saw off the challenge of Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen on Saturday night to become the Champion of Champions for 2017.
Montoya drove to victory against the nine times Le Mans winner and perennial ROC runner up Kristensen, competing in his fifth Race of Champions finals event. Understandably delighted with his success, 2015 Indy 500 victor and ROC debutant Montoya had the following to say following his stunning victory on Saturday:
"First I want to thank all the fans who came out today. Fredrik Johnsson and everyone at the Race Of Champions have put together an amazing event, it’s unbelievable. Today I’m regretting not having done this before. It has been an amazing experience.
“It’s not our job, it’s a fun event. But when you go to the grid you want to warm the tyres and the brakes. You think about how to drop the clutch, what to do in the first corner. It’s unbelievable how focused you are. It’s like qualifying. I don’t know what gave me the edge. I don’t have pride, I just kept asking people what they were doing. That way I kept adding things to the database of what I needed to do. I spoke to David Coulthard just before the final to ask whether I had to change gears in the cars because I had no idea. It went well… must be beginner’s luck!”
Kristensen added: “I’m proud to have made it to the final and I enjoy it immensely to be here. I’ve been retired for two years but coming here of course you don’t forget what you live for. We are racing drivers and to be invited to the Race Of Champions brings the best out of us. If you’re too cautious you don’t win but if you are too brave you can get it wrong so easily. But the camaraderie is special. You try to do your best and in the end all the races are extremely close so you never know beforehand who will win. So well done to Juan Pablo. I’ve known him for many years and I always knew he would have an exceptional career.”
Montoya beat illustrious rivals in the form of Sauber youngster Pascal Wehrlein, all American action hero Travis Pastrana, Williams Grand Prix driver Felipe Massa and of course "Mr. Le Mans" himself Tom Kristensen in the final round event over three action packed heats.“It’s not our job, it’s a fun event. But when you go to the grid you want to warm the tyres and the brakes. You think about how to drop the clutch, what to do in the first corner. It’s unbelievable how focused you are. It’s like qualifying. I don’t know what gave me the edge. I don’t have pride, I just kept asking people what they were doing. That way I kept adding things to the database of what I needed to do. I spoke to David Coulthard just before the final to ask whether I had to change gears in the cars because I had no idea. It went well… must be beginner’s luck!”
Kristensen added: “I’m proud to have made it to the final and I enjoy it immensely to be here. I’ve been retired for two years but coming here of course you don’t forget what you live for. We are racing drivers and to be invited to the Race Of Champions brings the best out of us. If you’re too cautious you don’t win but if you are too brave you can get it wrong so easily. But the camaraderie is special. You try to do your best and in the end all the races are extremely close so you never know beforehand who will win. So well done to Juan Pablo. I’ve known him for many years and I always knew he would have an exceptional career.”
You can see the highlights from the action on Saturday below:
Sunday's Nations Cup event would prove to be no less dramatic as Sebastian Vettel of Team Germany lifted the coveted Nations crown once again at the close of the days racing at Marlins Park in Miami. Vettel represented team Germany solo following the withdrawal of teammate Pascal Wehrlein on doctors advice after his substantial accident during the individuals heats on Saturday. The four time Formula One World Champion would not be deterred as he lifted the crown for a record seventh time on behalf of his national team, beating Team USA NASCAR’s Kyle and Kurt Busch 2-0 in the final event at Miami, locking out the top sport as an individual driver for the first time in ROC history.
Vettel said: “The Race Of Champions is a great competition, but yesterday I went out very early. So I wanted to make sure I didn’t leave the States empty-handed. I started on the wrong foot but it helped me to take it a bit more seriously. Today I just wanted to get some more time on the track. I found the rhythm straightaway and it felt pretty good. Unlike yesterday, I got along with all the cars today. But that’s the way it goes: sometimes you wake up and it works, sometimes it doesn’t. It obviously worked out well but of course it would have been nicer to share this victory with Pascal.”
Kurt Busch added: “This was a fantastic day and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it from the beginning to the end. As the NASCAR team we definitely wanted to advance out of our group ahead of the IndyCar guys and Rally X guys. So to win some rounds and advance was great. When you get into that rhythm, that’s when you start to feel the flow of ROC. It was a tremendous pleasure and an honour to go out there and race for the United States along with my little brother Kyle. It was a great atmosphere so thank you to Fredrik Johnsson and the ROC team.”
Kyle Busch said: “It was a great treat to be able to come out here. I had a super time, it was a lot of fun. To be teamed up with Kurt and beat some of these guys from around the world in different cars was very exciting for me. I got beaten up by Vettel and Coulthard – I guess those are two pretty good guys to lose to – but I think I beat everyone else I was up against. I had a lot of fun and I enjoyed the experience. So I’d love to be invited back and go to another Race Of Champions somewhere.”
Team Germany's Sebastian Vettel beat Gabby Chaves and new Champion of Champions Juan Pablo Montoya in two straight heats during the quarter finals, having already dispatched 2009 Formula One World Champion Jenson Button and Team Nordic’s Petter Solberg and Tom Kristensen in the earlier rounds.
A new event for the 2017 edition of the Race of Champions saw the debut of the Ryder Cup-style America vs The World competition. The new competition seeing six American drivers take on a selection of entrants from around the world in a head-to-head shootout, with The Rest of the World finally coming out on top beating the American team 8 - 7 in the final scores.
Kyle Bush, Alex Rossi, Kurt Bush, Scott Speed and Kyle Bush again scored victories for America against James Hinchcliffe, Tony Kannan, David Coulthard, Helio Castroneves and Jenson Button respectively, with Montoya, Kristensen, Felipe Massa, Sebastien Vettel and Petter Solberg securing the honours for team Rest of the World.
In the end it boiled down to a single winner-takes-all heat between Global Rallycross Champion Scott Speed and World Rallycross Chamion Petter Solberg in the RX Supercar Lite. Solberg prevailed to seal an 8-7 win for The World.
Solberg said: “It was a bit of pressure. But when Scott came up to me he said he was going to beat me. So I thought, okay you can try! I was focused so I went properly flat out, rally style, and it worked really well. I was very happy when I did it. These circuit drivers are so neat so it’s a different driving style, but I’m working on it… But coming from cold Norway here to Miami is great – and to drive in a baseball stadium has been fantastic. It was a great atmosphere. The ROC guys rocked again.”
You can catch the highlights from Sunday's America vs The World competition below:
So with the Race of Champions over for yet another year do you think deserving champions have been crowned during the event? Did you like the 2017 ROC? Did a taste of the American style add an extra spice to ROC this year? Let us know in the comments section below!
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