JUAN PABLO MONTOYA REUNITED WITH 2004 BRAZILIAN GP WINNING WILLIAMS FW26
Juan Pablo Montoya reveals the $200,000 cost to restore his Williams FW26 as F1 car ownership trends among legends like Ocon and Button.
Juan Pablo Montoya spent most of his Formula 1 career racing for Williams. They pulled him straight out of American racing and signed him for the 2001 season.
It worked out pretty well. Montoya won four races in 68 starts, even though Michael Schumacher and Ferrari were dominating back then. He still managed to finish in the top three of the championship in both 2002 and 2003.
Montoya’s name sits high in Williams’ record books. He’s in their top five for podiums (23) and pole positions (11).
He left Williams at the end of 2004 and joined McLaren for two seasons. After that, he headed back to the U.S. to race in NASCAR.
Now, Montoya faces a pretty hefty bill if he wants to relive his Williams days. On his AS Colombia podcast, he said he bought the Williams FW26—the car he drove to victory in the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix, his last race for the team.
But owning the car and actually driving it are two different things. The car ran a BMW engine back in the day, but right now, it’s just an empty shell—no engine at all.
Montoya’s 50 now, but he was still racing as recently as 2023. He’s got plans to get the car running and take it out for a few laps soon.
He’s not sugarcoating it—getting the car back on track will cost him close to $200,000 (£147,000) if he wants to do serious mileage.
“The car is missing an engine,” Montoya said. “We were supposed to put one in this year, but we haven’t even done a single lap.
“To be honest, I’ve got so many other things going on. The idea is to take it for a few laps.
“If you want, you can chip in and give it a try yourself! If you want to do 40 laps in that car, it’ll end up costing about $150,000 to $200,000 in total.
“One day on track will run you $80,000 to $100,000, and all the parts and extras are another $100,000.”
Montoya’s not the only F1 driver who owns a piece of his old racing history.
In 2024, Esteban Ocon got his hands on the Alpine car he took to victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix—still his only F1 win. Ocon, who’s now moved to Haas, actually had a contract clause that let him keep the car.
Fernando Alonso’s championship-winning Renaults from 2005 and 2006 are on display in his museum in Spain.
Jenson Button also owned his 2009 Brawn—the car that won him the title—but he sold it at auction last year for a whopping £2.8 million.
HEALTH CRISIS: ALONSO FACES EARLY RETIREMENT AS NERVE DAMAGE RISK SHAKES ASTON MARTIN PROJECT
Fernando Alonso faces a shock mid-season retirement as Adrian Newey warns of permanent nerve damage from Honda vibrations.
There’s talk that Fernando Alonso could get pushed to retire from Formula 1 before the season’s even over, all thanks to some pretty serious pain in his neck and left wrist. That’s according to a journalist who’s been following the situation closely.
Alonso turns 45 this June, and he’s now in his fifth year with Aston Martin. But things aren’t going smoothly. Right now, the team can’t even finish a full race because their Honda power unit shakes so much that it’s messing up Alonso’s and Lance Stroll’s wrists.
Adrian Newey, who runs the team and handles their technical direction, didn’t sugarcoat it back in Australia. He said those vibrations are bad enough to risk permanent nerve damage if the drivers stay out too long. Alonso’s limited to 25 laps in a row, and Stroll’s even worse off; he can only handle 15.
Race day in Melbourne turned out to be a bit better, at least for Stroll. He managed 43 out of 58 laps before heading back to the garage. But he only got to race after missing qualifying because of an engine problem.
Alonso had a wild start, jumping up seven spots to 10th place on the first lap using soft tyres, but he dropped back later. He came into the garage twice during the race. The team thought he’d have to retire early, but they got him back out there, only for another problem to stop him for good. Twenty-one laps, and that was it for Alonso in Melbourne.
Even so, Alonso’s still talking positively about the rest of the 2026 season, though he admits fixing the car really depends on Honda.
But on Radio Marca’s ‘La Tribu', Spanish journalist Emilio Perez de Rozas said Alonso is struggling with “significant discomfort” in the car. He even suggested doctors might tell him to retire during the season. Perez de Rozas didn’t mince words: “The project is currently an absolute fiasco. We’ll see if they recommend he stop and if he might retire.”
SPORTbible reached out to Alonso’s management, A14 Management, for a statement.
After the Australian Grand Prix, Alonso said he expects Aston Martin’s problems to be just as bad at the next race in China, and he explained that the team needs more time to figure things out. “It’s not the best feeling driving with this level of vibrations,” he said. Honda thinks they’ve reduced battery vibrations since Bahrain by making some changes, but the chassis hasn’t improved; they still need to isolate the battery differently. Alonso said it’ll take a bit longer, but they’re doing all they can, putting in as many laps as possible to help the team.
CHECO RETURNS: SERGIO PEREZ OFFICIALLY DEBUTS FOR CADILLAC AT THE 2026 AUSTRALIAN GP
A new era for Checo: Get the report on Perez’s Red Bull exit, his year away, and his partnership with Bottas at Cadillac Racing.
Sergio Perez looks like a new man. He’s back in Formula 1 after a year away, and honestly, he seems more alive than he ever was at Red Bull. Now he’s rolling with Cadillac, who are making its debut in the sport, and you can see the energy in him; he’s excited, refreshed, and just really happy to be back.
People have been talking about his age and the time he spent away from racing, but Perez isn’t worried. He believes in what Cadillac can do, and he’s clear about what he can bring to the table. Sure, his pre-season testing didn’t exactly blow anyone away, but that’s not stopping him. After a rough stint at Red Bull, he’s ready to chase success all over again.
The pressure of Red Bull is gone, and you can tell. Anthony Davidson noticed it too. On Ted Kravitz’s Melbourne Podbook, Davidson mentioned seeing Perez smile in a way he hadn’t since before Red Bull. That says a lot. The Red Bull years really took it out of him.
Davidson said, “I haven’t seen that smile on Checo’s face in a long time. I think since before he joined Red Bull. So it’s great to see both drivers happy.” And it’s not just Perez; Rachel Brookes pointed out that his teammate, Valtteri Bottas, was also in great spirits during the media day. Bottas even joked about his championship picks, saying Fernando, Lance, and George, because, according to him, they were all sandbagging.
Brookes added that Bottas is in such a good mood now, and taking that year away really gave him a new appreciation for the sport. It’s brought out a whole new energy in him.
So here they are: Perez and Bottas, lining up for Cadillac’s first season in F1. No one’s expecting them to win a bunch of races or stand on the podium every weekend, but their job is huge. Being the first drivers for a brand-new team is a massive challenge, and they’ve got to prove that both they and Cadillac have what it takes.
Their main goal? Get points as often as possible. Perez probably feels the pressure a bit more than Bottas, but both know what’s expected of them. Cadillac wants to make a splash in its debut season, and everything depends on how Perez and Bottas perform. They’re front and centre for whatever success comes Cadillac’s way.
