When Formula One was testing every other week, I managed to gain pit access during a test session at Silverstone. In the Williams garage was Juan Pablo Montoya, driving for the team. An overzealous photographer started taking pictures of Montoya as his pit crew wheeled him into the garage after he returned from the track.

Montoya became visibly angered at being photographed. You could see the irritation in his eyes and his general agitation behind the wheel. I think he didn’t like his personal space being breached, even in a mostly empty pit lane.

And Montoya’s quick-to-anger persona really stuck with me after that pit lane interaction. The photographer, by the way, was me. And indeed, Montoya’s frustration was evident in his on-track performance, almost as if he used the steering wheel as a transmitter for that same fiery personality.

Fast forward to today: retired for many years now, Montoya is an F1 pundit and has launched scathing criticism of Max Verstappen after the Red Bull driver disparaged the 2026 F1 regulations.

Max simply wants a purer form of racing and strongly dislikes the increased reliance on battery power, which he says has ruined the feel of the cars, calling the 2026 regulations “anti-racing” and “Mario Kart”.

Montoya simply wants Verstappen to shut up with the moaning.

Verstappen’s constant stream of criticism appears to have triggered Montoya, who believes the FIA should clamp down on such public comments with fines, penalty points, and perhaps even the kitchen sink.

I have to say, it’s one of the most contradictory arguments I’ve heard. Montoya wants the right to criticise, but also wants to silence those who criticise. That sounds like a full-blown authoritarian contradiction.

We’re the first to critique Verstappen when necessary, but silencing him simply for voicing an opinion is the height of absurdity.

Of course, Verstappen was unimpressed and responded in typical Verstappen fashion: blunt, direct, and to the point. But who exactly is Montoya to dictate that? Does he want Disney F1?

We’ve grown used to sharp takes from now retired Dr Helmut Marko — formerly known as “Mad Dog” Marko — so by comparison, Montoya comes across as a cheap imitation. That is to say… he ain’t no Mad Dog Marko… mad yes, Marko, no.