Writing on his personal website, Montagny's goals for the year 2010 seem to have taken a sudden turn towards a successful Le Mans programme, rather than securing a return to Formula One.
“F1 is magical but winning Le Mans would be realistic ... and just as magical!” wrote the 31-year old racer. Enough to make us believe he puts the emphasis on a second consecutive Le Mans experience with French manufacturer Peugeot.
Montagny spent the last season in endurance racing, following a failed attempt to secure a racing seat in the North American IndyCar Series. As far as his Formula One past goes, his CV includes a few races with defunct team Super Aguri back in 2006, as well as a couple of years as test/reserve driver for Toyota F1 Team.
Although he was also linked with a potential move to US F1 team in recent weeks, the more realistic shot of making the F1 field next year rested with Renault. With him out of contention for the team's second seat, the threat for Grosjean seems to come from Germany and Belgium.
Nick Heidfeld is currently with no seat for the upcoming season, while also Ralf Schumacher is linked with a potential return to the series in 2010. In addition, Belgian driver Jerome D'Ambrosio might be offered the chance to debut in F1, following his fruitful working relationship with soon-to-be manager of Renault F1 Team, Eric Boullier.
Boullier was head of GP2 team DAMS, where D'Ambrosio competed for the past 2 seasons.
Google News