Montoya to run #86 at Indy to honor Revson’s pole for McLaren

The Colombian veteran, who has started just five Indy 500s yet has won two of them, was announced as the team’s third, Indy-only driver last December, alongside fulltimers Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist, while last month it was revealed that Mission Foods will be Montoya's primary sponsor.

Today, Arrow McLaren SP announced that Montoya’s orange and white entry will pay tribute to Revson’s effort in qualifying for the 1971 edition of the Memorial Day Weekend classic.

As team co-owner Sam Schmidt had long hoped, the team has also been able to confirm that Montoya will also race the #86 in the Grand Prix of Indianapolis, two weeks earlier, May 14-15.

That year, the works team saw its laptimes consistently bested by the similar M16 of Team Penske, piloted by Mark Donohue, and Revson would suffer a late engine blow-up. However, in qualifying, Donohue didn’t show his earlier pace and Revson’s crewmembers, who had hurriedly installed a new Offenhauser engine, were rewarded with the sight of their car not only capturing pole with a 178.696mph four-lap average, but also beating the Indianapolis Motor Speedway track record by over 7mph.

Peter Revson, McLaren M16-Offenhauser, 1971 Indianapolis 500.

Photo by: Motorsport Images

Montoya, who won Indy with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2000 (his Indy debut) and with Team Penske in 2015, said: “I’ve really missed this race so I can’t wait to compete in my first Indianapolis 500 since 2017.

“It is extra-special to carry the #86 on my Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet, honoring the incredible drive by Peter Revson for the pole for McLaren in 1971. This team is a great mixture of rich history and exciting promise, so it will be a thrill to join them as I compete for my third Indianapolis 500 victory."

Team co-owner Sam Schmidt said “It’s a beautiful car and will really complement the other two Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolets driven by Pato and Felix. I want to thank Arrow Electronics and Mission Foods for supporting the #86 entry, so the team can field three great drivers and cars with a chance to win the race."

CEO of McLaren Racing, Zak Brown, added: “This entry represents the combination of three strong relationships: McLaren and Indianapolis, Juan Pablo and Indianapolis, and McLaren and Juan Pablo, so the number just clicked for all of us.

“Most of all it will be fantastic for the fans, our partners and our team to see him line up with Pato and Felix for this global sports spectacle."