By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter
Juan Pablo Montoya will remain with Team Penske but will compete solely in the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil.
Motorsport.com confirmed the news following months of speculation as to where the Columbian might end up for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season as Josef Newgarden has been announced as Montoya’s replacement in the No. 2 Chevrolet.
He was linked to talks with a few teams for a full-time ride including Chip Ganassi Racing, where he won the 1999 CART Championship and the 2000 Indianapolis 500. He was also reportedly in talks with Ed Carpenter Racing as well as AJ Foyt Racing.
Montoya noted to Motorsport that staying with Penske will give him a great chance at winning his third Indianapolis 500.
“It’s my best chance to win Indy again, to be honest,” he said. “That is the one that counts and Penske gives me the best chance to win.”
Tim Cindric, president of Team Penske, also noted that Montoya is on the team’s driver list if the team returns to sportscar racing. The team has been rumored to return to prototype racing in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship in the revamped Daytona Prototype International class, but Cindric noted that the team is still far from confirming their plans.
“We’re a long way from knowing that,” he said. “The first questions would be if we put a deal together, when could we have racecars and engines? The planned schedule of what follows would be predicated from there.”
