Montoya will become first driver to race three series at the Brickyard

INDIANAPOLIS -- Juan Pablo Montoya navigated his golf cart through the infield at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, zipped into a parking spot and hopped out.

He didn't even make it a full step before a security guard stopped him in his tracks and ordered him to move the cart.

Not even an Indy great gets a break at the Brickyard.

Montoya will become the first driver to race in three series at Indianapolis when he makes his NASCAR debut on Sunday. He won the Indianapolis 500 in 2000, his only appearance in the storied race, and made six Formula One starts at the Brickyard.

"I think when I'm 50 that's going to be a remarkable thing to remember," he said Friday. "But today, it's (about) getting the job done."

With an extensive and successful open-wheel background, Montoya is still adapting to driving a full-bodied stock car in this first full season of NASCAR. He's had his share of struggles and suffered through a nine-race stretch that saw him fail to finish higher than 20th -- and four of them were 31st or lower.

He finally broke through with his first Nextel Cup victory on the road course in Sonoma, Calif., on June 24. But because road racing is his specialty, the pressure is still on for Montoya to win on an oval.

Juan Pablo Montoya will make his NASCAR debut at Indy Sunday. He also ran in the 500 and made six F1 appearances there. (AP)

Car owner Chip Ganassi, who also fielded Montoya's Indy 500 entry, thinks his driver is judged against an exaggerated learning curve.

"People have a lot of expectations with someone with the background that he has in racing," Ganassi said. "Juan hasn't been in 50 oval track races yet and most of these guys have run 50 oval track races before they were 14 years old.

"We're still in the process here of coming along and by no means are we there yet."

Although the road ahead is long, Ganassi is also quick to point to the success Montoya has already had this season. He's won three races since making the radical -- and sometimes ridiculed -- decision to leave Formula One for NASCAR last July, and all three victories came in different series.

He opened the year by teaming with two other drivers to win the prestigious 24 Hours of Daytona sports car event in January, followed it with a Busch Series win on the road course in Mexico City in March and then his Cup victory last month.

"What better kind of a rookie year can you have?" Ganassi asked. "Our big push now is to get him to win on these ovals, (but) if the year ended tomorrow, I'd say it was a great year."