Top 20 Countdown: No. 9 Juan Pablo Montoya
(Getty Images)
2009 statistics
Finish | Poles | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
8 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 18 |
The countdown
No. 20: Martin Truex Jr. | Career stats
No. 19: Brian Vickers | Career stats
No. 18: Kasey Kahne | Career stats
No. 17: Clint Bowyer | Career stats
No. 16: David Reutimann | Career stats
No. 15: Kevin Harvick | Career stats
No. 14: Ryan Newman | Career stats
No. 13: Greg Biffle | Career stats
No. 12: Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Career stats
No. 11: Jeff Burton | Career stats
No. 10: Matt Kenseth | Career stats
No. 9: Juan Pablo Montoya | Career stats
No. 8: Revealed Jan. 27
Editor's note: Yahoo! Sports is counting down the top 20 drivers of the 2010 season. The order was determined by a survey, which asked five NASCAR journalists – Jay Busbee and Jay Hart (Yahoo! Sports); Jenna Fryer (Associated Press); Dustin Long (Landmark Newspapers); and Nate Ryan (USA Today) – to predict the final standings for the 2010 season. The countdown will conclude on Feb. 5 with the unveiling of the No. 1 driver.
2009 finish: 8th
Our 2010 predictions:
• Jay Busbee: 10th
• Jay Hart: 10th
• Jenna Fryer: 11th
• Dustin Long: 7th
• Nate Ryan: 2nd
Outlook for 2010: Along with Denny Hamlin, Montoya is carrying the mantle of "next great champion." And like Hamlin, the hope and expectations are well-deserved. Montoya had a true breakout season last year, his third in NASCAR. After finishing in the 20s in 2007 and 2008, he concluded 2009 in eighth place, and he only finished that low because of some difficult runs in the year's final six races.
How good was Montoya in 2009? Good enough that four races into the Chase he was running well enough to derail Jimmie Johnson. Montoya hung around the top five in the standings through seven Chase races. By the time his wheels fell off at Texas, nobody was thinking this was a one-time-only visit to NASCAR's postseason.
For Montoya, the key to a successful 2010 will be patience. He's cost himself entire races by getting too impatient. He lost the Brickyard 400, a race that everyone had all but conceded was his, when he sped down pit road. And his crew chief Brian Pattie often played shrink on the radio as he tried to calm down a ranting, irritated Montoya. If he can keep his temper under control and his mind on the track, Montoya will be a serious NASCAR challenger for years to come.
What you need to know: Three years. That's how long it took the former CART champ and Indy 500 winner to get comfortable behind the wheel of a Sprint Cup car. He's as talented as they come, having succeeded at every form of motorsports that he's attempted, but even he's had trouble adjusting to the parameters of NASCAR. That should serve as a cautionary tale for drivers like Danica Patrick and Nelson Piquet Jr. – success is achievable, but not immediately.
