Video: Montoya reunited with his 2004 Williams FW26

14th July 2024

Ethan Jupp

The whole ‘bring back V10s’ movement is arguably driven by just how awesome 2004 Formula 1 cars are. Very nearly as powerful as today’s F1 cars, much lighter, with very nearly as much downforce, a number of circuit records set that year stand even to this day. A man central to that glorious early 2000s era of record-breaking V10s was Juan Pablo Montoya, who at the 2024 Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard was reunited with his 2004 Williams-BMW FW26.

Montoya took to the Hill on the Saturday in the wonderful white and blue Williams and stoked that BMW-sourced V10 like he was setting off on a winning race in Sao Paulo. The car absolutely howled, filling the grounds of the estate with 3.0-litre, 19,000rpm mechanical ten-cylinder music.

Montoya remarked after the run that the car still felt really quick. As well it should, given it put out some 950PS (708kW) in race trim. In fact, it’s generally accepted that the BMW engines were the strongest of that era in terms of raw power, if not the most reliable or consistent. On its day, though, the FW26 could out-drag the F2004.

Of course, the er, elephant in the room, is the ‘tusks’, which we don’t see on this car. This is a late-season spec with the more conventional nose but the FW26 infamously made its debut with wide-set vertical spars to allow cleaner airflow through the nose and under the car. The concept didn’t exactly come together in terms of downforce and performance games, so the idea was eventually scrapped.

It was truly awesome to see Montoya back in this car at the Festival of Speed. Everyone loves an underdog and that’s exactly what they were in this mad Ferrari/Brawn/Byrne/Schumacher era of dominance.

The 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway, and you can watch every moment of the action on our live stream right here on GRR!