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[McLaren Fan]

From Planet F1:

Massa given no warning
Sunday 3rd August 2008

A dejected Felipe Massa has insisted he was given no warning that his engine was about to expire at the end of the Hungarian GP.

After a terrific drive that defied the widely-held expectation that Lewis Hamilton would cruise to a third-successive win, Massa was denied a richly deserved victory when his engine blew up with just two laps remaining.

Rubbishing the theory that he had slowed down in the laps beforehand because he had been warned of an imminent failure, Massa told Autosport: "When Lewis Hamilton had a problem with the tyres I knew straight away and I reduced the rpm of the engine to save everything I could for the end of the race. I had 23 seconds in front of Heikki, so I knew what I had to do. I was not in trouble, the tyres were not in trouble. I was just saving the car until the end of the race, but maybe it was not enough.

"When things looked already finished with only two laps to go and then you just hear something and have a strange feeling in the car as the engine breaks down, for sure it is not a great feeling. I feel really bad, and not happy for what has happened."

At least Massa was able to enjoy the consolation of an excellent performance that saw him pass both McLarens at the start of the race and maintain a comfortable lead over Hamilton even before the Englishman's car suffered a puncture.

"I think after a race like that, even with the bad result at the end with two laps to go, it still counts what we did in the race. We showed a great performance, a great pace and great teamwork. That is very good for the next races.

"I think I made a great start and we showed incredible pace afterwards. I even managed to open the gap, which allowed me to open the gap in front of him some laps shorter than the strategy demanded. Then we did a perfect job during the first stint and the second stint. My engineer was explaining everything on the radio. The pit stops were great and everything was perfect, and then....the end we know."

While Massa's sudden retirement meant he fell to third in the World Championship when a win would have propelled him into first place, the Brazilian remains confident that he can still take the title.

"I feel that I am in a very strong position. So I think I am still growing a lot and getting stronger and stronger race by race, so for sure that can help for the championship, the confidence, and that is the most important thing. At the moment everything is completely open, we have three cars in a very small gap in terms of points. Everything is open and full of opportunity to fight for the championship," he commented.


At least he is approaching the situation in the right way. Yeah, what happened was unfortunate, but this afternoon demonstrated he and Ferrari are still in the game (not that they were ever out of it, in my view).

[darwin dali]

And his masterful driving (incl. passing both McLarens which according to you Chris counts double in Hungary ) should silence his detractors. It was a championship worthy drive.

[Rivelution]

And his masterful driving (incl. passing both McLarens which according to you Chris counts double in Hungary ) should silence his detractors. It was a championship worthy drive.

He certainly has me on his side now. He is really starting to pull through, and for the longest time I thought he was lucky for having his Ferrari seat. He certainly has proved to me that he is deserves that seat and that he can contend for the title... just hope it doesnt rain

[McLaren Fan]

I wouldn't get too carried away with things just yet. Massa has shown before that he can be fast around certain tracks. Who's to say this is another false dawn? He needs to use this performance as a springboard for the future.

[darwin dali]

I wouldn't get too carried away with things just yet. Massa has shown before that he can be fast around certain tracks. Who's to say this is another false dawn? He needs to use this performance as a springboard for the future.

He hasn't had a decent result on this track ever. So, aside from the engine failing, he improved radically on a track that's considered by most drivers as very demanding.

[Denthúl]

I wouldn't get too carried away with things just yet. Massa has shown before that he can be fast around certain tracks. Who's to say this is another false dawn? He needs to use this performance as a springboard for the future.

But he's been doing it more and more with the tracks where he doesn't have a proven track record of being the fastest there (such as Turkey, for example) or that are not his favourites. He's never had a good race at the Hungaroring, but today he was impressive. Likewise, Monaco is a track that he openly admits he really dislikes, but he grabbed pole and, were it not for his mistake, he could have had a really good result. Saying that, he did get a good result there. He's also improved his consistency since the opening two races. I know some people have had a stab at him for Silverstone, but Raikkonen also managed to spin more than once there. It was rainy and they both had issues with the Ferrari wanting to put down more power than the intermediate tyres could handle, in terms of grip.

[McLaren Fan]

And how many others tracks are there on which Massa needs to improve? Massa deserves a hell lot of credit today, no bones about it, but I still don't see what he did that was so special; he was only doing what he was meant to be anyway, i.e. doing a good job, even on a track he doesn't like, in a top car. As I've said, Massa has shown the world what he is capable of and that Ferrari are still in the hunt. He now has to build on today's performance, and judging by what he is saying, he seems to be going the right way about it.

[Denthúl]

And how many others tracks are there on which Massa needs to improve? Massa deserves a hell lot of credit today, no bones about it, but I still don't see what he did that was so special; he was only doing what he was meant to be anyway, i.e. doing a good job, even on a track he doesn't like, in a top car. As I've said, Massa has shown the world what he is capable of and that Ferrari are still in the hunt. He now has to build on today's performance, and judging by what he is saying, he seems to be going the right way about it.

Judging by his form this season, I can't see that many. Australia was a combination of mistakes, mechanical issues and David Coulthard. Malaysia was simply driver-error. But on every other track this season aside from Silverstone, he has driven well. He's cut out the mistakes and really started to focus. Given the fact that you're always going on about how he doesn't have the natural talent of Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton etc. he's doing a bloody good job.

[McLaren Fan]

Judging by his form this season, I can't see that many. Australia was a combination of mistakes, mechanical issues and David Coulthard. Malaysia was simply driver-error. But on every other track this season aside from Silverstone, he has driven well. He's cut out the mistakes and really started to focus. Given the fact that you're always going on about how he doesn't have the natural talent of Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton etc. he's doing a bloody good job.

It's interesting that you only raise half of what I say about Massa. In my view, the guy is not as gifted as his teammate or Alonso etc., but I've also stated that he does work very hard and I admire him for that.

[Denthúl]

Judging by his form this season, I can't see that many. Australia was a combination of mistakes, mechanical issues and David Coulthard. Malaysia was simply driver-error. But on every other track this season aside from Silverstone, he has driven well. He's cut out the mistakes and really started to focus. Given the fact that you're always going on about how he doesn't have the natural talent of Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton etc. he's doing a bloody good job.

It's interesting that you only raise half of what I say about Massa. In my view, the guy is not as gifted as his teammate or Alonso etc., but I've also stated that he does work very hard and I admire him for that.

Yet you do seem to criticise him an awful lot, often on the grounds that he isn't as good as those others and that he should be doing more to show he deserves his Ferrari seat. Given that he is currently putting in much more effort than his world champion team-mate and consistently beating him both in terms of race results and pace, I think that's a little unfair. The way he has buckled down this season has shown that, even though he may not be the most naturally talented racer, he is doing a job that, in my opinion, is worthy of a championship. He may not have the talent of the great world champions, but he does have the dedication, which is admirable.

[McLaren Fan]

Yet you do seem to criticise him an awful lot, often on the grounds that he isn't as good as those others...

True.

...and that he should be doing more to show he deserves his Ferrari seat.

Untrue. Massa, since he joined Ferrari, has been working extremely hard to show he deserves his work seat at Ferrari. It takes a lot for a racing driver, who can often be pretty egotistical, to take advice from their peers, i.e. the legendary Michael Schumacher.

The way he has buckled down this season has shown that, even though he may not be the most naturally talented racer, he is doing a job that, in my opinion, is worthy of a championship. He may not have the talent of the great world champions, but he does have the dedication, which is admirable.

The harsh reality of life in Formula One is that effort is not enough to win a championship. What about other drivers who are trying extremely hard and have more ability than Massa? You get nowhere without effort, that's without a doubt, but you can only get so far at the top level of something, in this case the highest class of motor racing on the planet. You need something else, i.e. that little bit extra of ability. Massa has already overachieved, in my view. Perhaps, because of his work ethic, he'll be able to overachieve slightly more.

Massa's efforts could inspire people. I certainly admire that he's a trier. I am not, however, going to pretend that this enough, nor I am going to suggest that what he did today was outstanding; as far as I'm concerned, if you are not regularly winning races in an F2008, regardless of whether or not you like the track (Ayrton Senna absolutely hated Donington Park with a vengeance), there is something wrong.

[przemo]

Massa deserves a hell lot of credit today, no bones about it, but I still don't see what he did that was so special; he was only doing what he was meant to be anyway, i.e. doing a good job, even on a track he doesn't like, in a top car.

What was special to me is that despite McLaren front-line lockout he was on his way to victory and they couldn't do anything about it.

[headless]

I wouldn't get too carried away with things just yet. Massa has shown before that he can be fast around certain tracks. Who's to say this is another false dawn? He needs to use this performance as a springboard for the future.

Not all tracks that he performs well on are 'False downs'

[Denthúl]

Well, put it this way. Without the engine failure, this would have been his fourth and he would have matched Hamilton for the season's win rate and, even more so, would have been beating Hamilton on points. I'd consider four races this season and three (which would have been four were it not for Ferrari letting Raikkonen win the championship) last year regularly. With another win under his belt, he would have beating Hamilton on his other results, because they'd have had four wins each.

Effort can take him to the final round and bring him a championship. I doubt it would do for two, but that's certainly something considering the talent deficit that there is between him and the others.

[bud]

Well, put it this way. Without the engine failure, this would have been his fourth

put it this way without Kimis exhaust failure this would have been his third...

put it this way without Lewis' tyre failure this would have been his 5th