Juan Pablo Montoya's time in the NASCAR Cup Series featured successes and struggles alike. And while he didn't consistently contend for the championship, he still felt he delivered at a solid level during his brief career.
"I thought it was pretty good honestly, for the cars that I was in and the equipment we were in," Montoya said Saturday at Watkins Glen as he prepared for his first Cup race since 2014. "I think in a couple of years we were not great, but we made the Chase, we fought for the championship."
Montoya raced full-time for Chip Ganassi Racing between 2007-13. He won two races -- one at Sonoma and one at Watkins Glen. He finished a career-best eighth in the championship standings in 2009 and he posted 59 top-10 finishes in 253 starts while working with a variety of crew chiefs.
"We did a lot of things with a lot less than the other teams, personally thinking," Montoya added. "I think our best run was with Brian (Pattie). When Brian was there, he was taking care of everything. When the new crew chief came in, and he stayed there until I left, it was a bit of a joke, but what can you do?"
Pattie's time atop the No. 42 pit box began midway through the 2008 season. Pattie was in charge of the No. 42 team when Montoya posted a career-best 18 top-10 finishes and seven top-fives in 2009. This is the same season when Montoya won the pole for the first time in his career.
Pattie, who celebrated one win with the Colombia native, remained in charge of the team until midway through the 2011 season. Jim Pohlman took over to close out the season schedule and then Chris Heroy took over for Montoya's final two seasons in NASCAR.
Montoya hasn't raced full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series since the 2013 season. He spent three full seasons in IndyCar while racking up four wins and then he competed in IMSA.
He has since scaled back his schedule while supporting his son's fledgling career. Sebastian Montoya raced in the FIA Formula 3 Championship this season.
Montoya did not plan on this NASCAR return with 23XI Racing. After all, it only began after a phone call from team president Steve Lauletta. Montoya agreed to return to Cup for a one-off start so that he could help 23XI Racing and Mobil 1 celebrate an important anniversary.
That doesn't mean that Montoya is completely done with the series.
The two-time Cup winner could potentially return for another one-off in the future. For now, however, he just wants to make it through his first weekend with the Next Gen car.
"Honestly, I probably some day -- if someone comes to me one day and asks me if I want to do a one-off, I would probably say yes," Montoya said. "But it is Saturday morning, so we will see."