Montoya sees red in Canada.

More used to having watch scarlet dominate in grands prix, Juan Pablo Montoya saw red of a different kind in Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix, as a combination of hues combined to earn him the black flag.

The Colombian was enjoying his strongest race yet for McLaren, and was in a position to possibly earn his first victory since defecting from Williams at the end of last season, but a combination of errors in the McLaren pit, and a subsequently frustrated driver, eventually led to Montoya breaking one of Formula One's cardinal rules.

Having been at the head of the field after both Renaults fell by the wayside, Montoya missed the opportunity to pit under the safety car when the team's call came too late. As a result, team-mate Kimi Raikkonen received the most optimal service, and rejoined in the lead after Montoya pitted next time around.

However, in his haste to rejoin the fray, Montoya missed the red light governing his exit from the pit-lane, barging back into line ahead of David Coulthard's Red Bull entry. Although his brusque re-entry would surely have fallen under the stewards' gaze, Montoya's fate was already sealed as he jumped the lights.

"I'm disappointed because I was so close to winning my first race for the team," the Colombian sighed after having had time to reflect on the error, "As a team, we all try so hard to be the best, but nobody is perfect and not being told to stop immediately after the safety car was deployed was made worse by me missing the red light."

McLaren team boss Ron Dennis admitted that some of the blame for Montoya's disqualification should rest with those on the pit-wall.

"Throughout the race, we had to take some difficult decisions, which only increased the pressure," he explained, "Against this backdrop, the mistake was made of not calling Juan Pablo in immediately after the deployment of the safety car which, of course, was only compounded by him driving through the red light.

"However., this shadow should not detract from a fantastic race by both Kimi and Juan Pablo. A one-two was possible, and would have most likely seen Juan Pablo take his first victory for the team. However, there are many more races this season and, as always, as a team, we will bear the consequences of our actions - whether they are positive or negative."