Montoya holds his nerve

'No one expected me to be doing this well so soon, so I don't feel any pressure. I'm a rookie, I have nothing to lose.'

The 23-year-old Columbian currently leads rival Dario Franchitti 172-168 in the championship, as the series heads to Vancouver this weekend.

With five races to go, Montoya has already broken the record for the most number of wins a rookie has achieved in his first year of CART - overtaking Nigel Mansell as the most successful rookie to enter the Champ Car series with five wins.

'This season has been much more than I, or anyone in the team, could have expected,' said Montoya.

'But we now realise we have a chance to make history, so the team is committed to earning as many points as we can in each race to see if we can make that dream a reality.

'Vancouver is a challenge because it's another of the course I've never seen before.

'I think because the track has reconfigured since last year, the other rookies and I will have an advantage since we're not used to the old layout.

'I'm looking forward to flying through the streets of Vancouver and hopefully increasing our lead in the points.'

Meanwhile, Franchitti is looking to retake the lead in the championship, notching up his second win at the circuit.

Last year, the Scot scooped $100,000 prize money plus a further $340,000 in bonus money for becoming the first driver to win from the pole in 22 events.