Full Throttle

I guess when you have talent and it’s placed behind the wheel, any wheel, the latent ability to go fast wins out most times.

Juan “Don’t Call me Pablo” Montoya proved just that in finishing third in his tin-top debut at Talladega. Not only that, after a crash-filled F1 season, he did it by avoiding the normal crash-fest in Alabama.

Montoya made a remarkable save after getting tapped in a melee created by a lap 37 crash between Blake Bjorklund and Tony Ave. “I was lucky to save it,” Montoya said. “I felt the hit and the car started to go one way, then the other. I was pretty lucky.”

Better lucky than good applies on occasion, but after 4 stops to repair the damage it took the aforementioned latent talent to work his way back through the field to be in contention.

ARCA star and 7-time Series Champ Frank Kimmel won the race. Stephen Wallace, the son of former NASCAR star Rusty Wallace, finished third.

“For a rookie, he did OK,” Kimmel said. “He did a great job racing all day. It’s pretty cool to have somebody of his stature in the ARCA Series.”

Indeed he did Frank.

ARCA, Talladega, NASCAR, Juan Montoya, Sports, Auto Racing, Motorsports, Full Throttle