NASCAR and motorsport legend Juan Pablo Montoya is making a highly anticipated return to the Cup Series this upcoming weekend at Watkins Glen International. At 48 years old, the racing icon will be making a special appearance for 23XI Racing, piloting the No. 50 Toyota Camry XSE.

In an exclusive interview with The Athletic, Montoya delved into his mindset and strategy for the upcoming weekend. He shared:

“The thing is, in NASCAR, you get run-ins every week because you have a bumper. Every other racing, you rub and you drag people up the track and things like that, but it’s kind of normal. In NASCAR, the give-and-take is a little different and you need to understand that and respect it a little bit, because payback is a b****.

“No, I race people fair and I hope people race me fair — and if they don’t, I won’t. It’s kind of normal. You treat people like people will treat you. It’s simple. If you want to be an a**, I can be a bigger a**; if you want to be nice, I’ll be very nice.”

Montoya’s return is a reminder of his illustrious career, which includes competing against top drivers in the 2000s and even drawing comparisons to seven-time Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher. His ventures span across Formula One, IndyCar, and NASCAR, with marquee victories such as dominating the 2000 Indianapolis 500 as a rookie and winning at Sonoma Raceway in 2007.

Although Montoya is not the favorite to win at Watkins Glen, his history at the track could make him a significant threat to the other drivers in the race.

Since his final full-time Cup Series season in 2014, Montoya has had sporadic appearances in IndyCar, maintaining a connection to the sport until 2022. He also keeps abreast of industry news, stating,

“Not much. I follow all the F1 races; I’m doing a podcast, so I make sure I follow that. But let’s say maybe once every two days, I’ll open a browser and look under motorsport and you see what’s going on, if there’s any good gossip.

“The thing is, over the week you hear a lot of gossip already, so things that come out, you kind of already know. I love gossip. Oh yes, I do love gossip. And I spend a lot of hours on TikTok, but not related to racing.”

When to watch NASCAR at Watkins Glen

Friday, September 13

2pm ET: ARCA Menards Series – Practice

3.15pm ET: ARCA Menards Series – Qualifying

5pm ET: ARCA Menards Series – General Tire 100 at The Glen

Saturday, September 14

9.30am ET: NASCAR Xfinity Series – Practice

10am ET: NASCAR Xfinity Series – Qualifying

11.30am ET: NASCAR Cup Series – Practice

1pm ET: NASCAR Cup Series – Qualifying

3pm ET: NASCAR Xfinity Series – Mission 200 at The Glen

Sunday, September 15

3pm ET: NASCAR Cup Series – Go Bowling at The Glen