Montoya hopes Ferrari will have been leapfrogged on pace

Ferrari will not race their definitive 2005 car until the fifth race of the season while all their rivals are to race new cars from the start.

"Probably, reliability-wise Ferrari are going to be in much better shape than we are," the Colombian said.

"The biggest question is pace - where do they stand?"

Ferrari are hoping their decision is the wise one as a result of the raft of rule changes being introduced in 2005.

These have forced major aerodynamic revisions, as well as the requirements for engines to last two race weekends and one set of tyres to be used for qualifying and the entire race.

McLaren unveil Ferrari challenger In pictures: McLaren's new car

Montoya acknowledged that Ferrari could be in good shape as far as the engine rules are concerned, saying they "are going to have a car that they know isn't going to break".

But not having a car specifically designed to meet the other new rules could hamper Ferrari's ability to compete on pure speed.

McLaren's new car was unveiled on Monday at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya.