Montoya confident of strong Monza showing

Juan Pablo Montoya has said that the Williams team's test at Monza this week has put him in a confident mood heading into the Italian Grand Prix next weekend, where he will attempt to claim the lead of the world championship standings from Michael Schumacher in Ferrari's home race

Sep 5, 2003, 2:20 PM

As in Hungary, the Colombian has said that his main focus is on finishing ahead of chief title rivals, Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen, but has admitted that a win in Italy would prove extra sweet.

"Monza is a good track for me," said Montoya. "I've been on pole twice there and I also achieved my first F1 victory there. We looked quite strong while testing at Monza this week, which makes us quite confident for the race weekend.

"The Italian people are so friendly and passionate about F1 that the atmosphere at the Autodromo is really special. There will obviously be a lot of Ferrari fans at the track so it would be very nice to score another victory at their home circuit, but Ferrari are also looking good for the race.

"My main focus now is scoring points and finishing the remaining races in front of my main rivals, Michael and Kimi. It's going to be a very, very interesting race."