Montoya: Sainz Sr. for FIA president a good change for Formula 1

Speaking in a recent interview, the former F1 race winner said: “I really like Carlos Sainz Sr, I get on with him really well. I think if he's running for the FIA Presidency, it would be a good change for F1 if it's necessary.

"At the moment, when people look at what is wrong with the sport, they blame Mohammed Ben Sulayem. For example, the swearing rules annoyed a lot of people, and he lost a lot of confidence from it. At the end of the day, if everyone in F1 hates him, wouldn't that change the votes? It's a very political system.”

Montoya added that it remains uncertain whether Sainz Sr could win such an election, but praised the Spaniard as a credible alternative: “Would Sainz Sr get in if it's based on votes? I don't know. Usually, FIA Presidents last a lot longer, but out of all the choices to replace Ben Sulayem, Sainz Sr is a really good one.

"Why would Sainz Sr want to get that involved? I'm not sure. He's still a driver and it's easy to say there will be a conflict of interest with his son. If something goes wrong, everyone will question that.”

Addressing the issue of Carlos Sainz Jr’s racing career potentially a conflict of interest with his father’s governance, Montoya said: “With Carlos Sainz Jr at Williams, I don't think there will be a problem there. Unless Sainz Jr did something really wrong and his dad interferes with the stewards during a race, there shouldn't be a problem.”