Montoya warns McLaren is 'hard to stop' as Norris closes 83-point gap to Antonelli

Juan Pablo Montoya has warned that McLaren is becoming “hard to stop” as Lando Norris carries back-to-back victories into this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza, closing the gap to Mercedes championship leader Kimi Antonelli to 83 points in the 2026 standings.

Norris, the reigning world champion, won consecutive races at the Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix to revive his title challenge. Montoya, speaking on F1 TV’s Weekend Warm-Up show, credited the shift in McLaren’s mentality — rather than any sudden leap in outright pace — for the team’s resurgence.

“The combination we’re seeing is a McLaren that is growing, a McLaren that is starting to put everything together, a McLaren that is not afraid of taking risks with strategy,” Montoya said. “Last year they were put in a position with the fastest car where they were winning races, but they were afraid of making mistakes and losing races, whereas now they’re the underdog and they’re going for broke, and it’s working.”

The 50-year-old former Colombian driver argued that momentum compounds quickly once a team begins to trust its instincts. “When you start doing things like that, and it works, the confidence in the team and the people around you just grows, and it’s going to be hard to stop him,” he added.

Montoya also drew a sharp contrast between Norris and McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri, suggesting the Australian has yet to find the same comfort level with the MCL40. While praising Piastri’s one-lap qualifying pace, Montoya noted that the car appears to become difficult to manage for him on hotter tyre compounds.

“I don’t think they’ve found the sweet spot for him. He hasn’t lost any speed,” Montoya said. “Lando’s just comfortable with the car, and when you trust the car, you can come off the brakes, you can roll the car in, you can throw the car in when you’re going to turn in. If you don’t know what the car is going to do, you’re never going to release the brakes as well. You’re never going to carry that speed. And that’s a big difference.”

With Antonelli still holding a commanding lead in the drivers’ standings, Norris needs consistent points hauls at Monza and beyond to keep the title fight alive. McLaren’s willingness to gamble on strategy, according to Montoya, is precisely what makes them a credible threat despite the deficit.