Montoya Praises 'More Reliable' Williams

Juan Pablo Montoya is putting his hopes on a more reliable BMW-Williams car to take him to new levels of success this year.

The Colombian star, who made his Formula One debut with the Grove-based squad in 2001, managed to finish just five of the 17 races last year, and was regularly hit by mechanical problems, but he now believes the team have moved forward by improving their reliability this season.

"We know the car is a little more reliable than last year and I think that's a big thing," said Montoya today.

The Williams car, however, has already hit problems during pre-season testing and BMW boss Gerhard Berger has expressed his disappointment with the FW24. But Montoya, like team boss Frank Williams, was quick to rubbish suggestions that the problems will be a burden to the team.

"I think everybody has got problems," he said. "I am pretty confident with the car and it's definitely a step forward from last year. The question is how much against everybody else.

"But this is what we've got and we can't change anything now. If we did enough, good. If we didn't, then we still have to work either way."