FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem has announced a plan to return to V8 engines before 2031, a move ex-driver Juan Pablo Montoya is strongly against.
Drivers and fans have heavily expressed their dislike of the latest battery-dependent 50/50 engine formula, and the FIA’s response is to bring back the beloved V8 engines with far less of a battery hybrid.
Montoya has previously spoken positively about the current regulations and has continued to support them.
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The current regulations
Speaking on the BBC Chequered Flag podcast, Montoya began by responding to Damon Hill’s support of the current regulations and overtaking, saying: “I think it’s really good.”
Montoya praised the new overtaking systems that replaced DRS this year, stating that he thought “DRS was such a BS”.
“With the DRS, I always felt like you were a sitting duck. It’s a second off. A second off is a pretty decent gap, or nine tenths. And then at the end of the straight, the guy blew by you, and they go, ‘What an overtake!’ And I go, ‘What do you mean, what an overtake. He didn’t do anything. He was just sitting there,” he added.
The new battery-aided overtaking systems have been one of the most contentious issues with the regulations amongst the drivers and fans, despite Montoya and Hill’s enjoyment.
Montoya stated that it actually allows for more tactical passing and that the drivers can now “fight” their way past.
The return of the V8 engine
To combat the dislike of the current engine formula, which people believe is too battery-dependent, the FIA have declared a return to a less electric split V8 engine.
Whilst a majority of fans have rejoiced about this return, Montoya’s opinion is less positive.
Driving with a V8 engine during some of his time in F1, Montoya reflected on the races as “boring”.
“People say, ‘Oh, your time was so good’, I say, ‘Watch a race, it’s so boring,” he stated.
Building on this, Montoya said that the races were not only boring to watch but boring for the drivers, instead reflecting on them as “a short test session”.
Whilst Montoya is evidently enjoying this engine era and wants it to stay this way, it appears he is largely alone in this position at the moment.
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SportJustSport writers 
Geoffrey H. Latayan