Montoya: It can blow up pretty bad between Norris and Piastri

Montoya believes the partnership between McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri is bound to fracture as they grow more competitive.

Montoya said: "I don’t know. Once you let them race, you open up a can of worms. The way McLaren have controlled the drivers has been really good and they're working together really well. But at some point, that's going to stop."

He warned that McLaren must remain vigilant: "If they're really close, that’s when they really need to keep the drivers on a tight leash. I think if they can keep them in a tight leash at McLaren, they're going to be really good with the drivers understanding that there's nobody above the team."

Predicting fireworks if McLaren fight for the championship, Montoya added: "If they have a car to win the drivers’ world championship, I think it can blow up pretty bad. I think it would be good for TV."

Montoya believes McLaren are favourites to win in Australia, though the race holds multiple intriguing narratives: "If it's a really smooth weekend, I think McLaren should win it. But there are so many fascinating elements."

Montoya continued: "It’s Piastri's home race. Is he going to step out of Lando’s shadow? Is that rivalry going to create some friction? Is that going to set a different tone for the year? Is Lewis Hamilton going to be able to beat [Charles] Leclerc?

"How much of a gap is there going to be between them? And what's going to happen with [Kimi] Antonelli? He's either going to be a massive shining star or, with so many eyes on him, will he fold under the pressure?"

Looking further down the grid, Montoya noted: "The Carlos Sainz story, how competitive are Williams going to be? That’ll be intriguing. It’s [Jack] Doohan’s home race as well, and everybody's got their eyes on him."

Montoya agreed with Max Verstappen’s assessment that Red Bull will struggle at Albert Park: "I agree [with Max Verstappen that Red Bull can’t win in Melbourne]. McLaren are ahead but how far? The Ferraris are going to be quite good, and the Mercedes."

He suggested pre-season testing had not revealed the full picture: "I think a lot of people were hiding their pace [in testing], not only McLaren. They’re still playing games at this stage."

Assessing the current pecking order, Montoya concluded: "I do think right now Red Bull are probably the fourth team on the grid."