I disagree. Massa's move had a greater potential for success than Kovalainen's which, in all honesty, could not possibly have worked. It was careless, for he simply spent the entire straight uncertain about it and then just stuck his car out there in an awkward position that would yield no results. It was still silly and he should not have gone around the way he did, but I don't think it warrants anything more than a drive-through penalty.
It had no chance of working. Massa went far too wide into the corner and Hamilton had the inside of the corner. At best, the size of the space available was half the width of the Ferrari.
Not with Massa coming out on top, no. But there was always the possibility for him to have lifted off and fed back on to the track right behind Hamilton and then try to nail him down the straight - he had enough straight-line speed. Regardless of which outcome, a drive-through would have been inevitable because he'd have been under investigation for cutting the chicane anyway. The only difference would have been that Lewis would not have lost quite as much time, though I don't think he could really have salvaged much of a result anyway because of the flat-spotting and the drive-through. Shame, really, because I wanted to see those two and Raikkonen battle on track with Kovalainen pulling off some assisting moves.
Disappointing, really
It's also worth saying that after today's display of driving from Massa and Alonso's opening lap in Singapore, to name but two incidents, the vitriol meted out to Hamilton and his driving has been proven completely unfair.
Are you talking about the Spa controversy or what Kubica said about him being dangerous?
Well, the Spa incident principally, but Massa showed that he just as aggressive as Hamilton.[/quote]
The Spa incident I agree with you on. I can't think of a driver who wouldn't have taken that option, despite the other possibilities. And aside from Massa, nobody other than Hamilton made a display of dangerous driving today. I think that Kubica's are justifiable to an extent, especially given the way Hamilton tried to pull off that doomed move. I don't think he's the only dangerous driver in the sport, but he's certainly the one that stands out the most by trying to pass-off things like that as "just racing". Pushing Massa and Piquet wide in Hockenheim was "just racing". Pushing Glock and Webber very wide in Monza was borderline, but still within the rules of fair play, even if only just, though the risks were very much there. And today can be passed off as nothing other than dangerous and overly-aggressive. He had no chance of making that work, forced a number of drivers (including his team-mate!) to take evasive action and, you could say (though I don't personally believe it was his fault) that he caused the incident involving Nakajima and Coulthard by bunching everybody up and making them go wide.
He's not as dangerous as Kubica says, no, not even close, though he is quite often fairly rude on-track with some of his moves. The air of arrogance about them does remind me somewhat of Michael Schumacher, who took a "King of the Road" approach that I strongly disagree with. I guess the difference is that Lewis has not caused any incidents like Schumacher did, although we're only in early days. He does have a lot of maturing to do, though he has already come a long way from last season. Let's hope it continues and we can have a world championship from him soon enough.
Im getting sick of all this lewis sympathy,
If I was a mclaren supporter, I would be so pissed of with him right now that he hasnt become a 2 times champion by Monza. Mclaren have been the most competative theyve been in 10 years and only been 
about by a rookie with a huge head! the mistake he made today at the start was so amatuerish, foolish and desperate it was laughable. he only needed 3rd place and its all still good for the next 2 races. Hes lucky he lost 2 points in his lead today.
watch out people, he isnt the star you think he is. just a rookie in a good car 
If lewis had locked up in turn one it would have been an awesome move. Drivers make mistakes. I admit he does annoy the hell out of me when his moves don't come off but that is part of the reason i love him, he isn't afraid to take a risk. F1 would be better off with more drivers like him. I'm fed up of F1's overtaking being done in the pits.
Also If Lewis is a rookie then who would you consider world class?
Mate, just remember that Senna is the best racer to have ever lived and he made much more ambitious moves than Lewis. Passion is the reason we love racers. One other thing, if the McLaren is so good then why the hell is Heiki so far behind Lewis when Lewis is an "amateur". I think by the fact Lewis obtained the same number of points as Alonso last year is enough evidence to prove his skill.
Possibly, but remember that Villeneuve only finished second to Hill in 1996 because of team orders and then went on to win the championship a year later, but then he went in to a perennial downward-spiral. His championship-position alone proves nothing. It's how he drives that does that.
On to the point, the only ways for Lewis not to have locked up like that would have been either for him to brake much earlier, thus losing the position to Raikkonen, or apply less brakes and carry on off the track, losing even more ground. I wouldn't call today a mistake as such, I'd call it a silly act that could, if he's not careful in the next two races, cost him the title. He over-drove at Brazil last season and as a result Raikkonen clinched the title. I'd hate to see him do the same thing again this year.
"Do what he did" is simply to try to drive along the kerb/gravel so as not to lose time to Hamilton, subsequently tagging Hamilton because he was not able to execute the move he had planned.
You can think I'm an idiot all that you like, I don't particularly care to be honest. It didn't even look like he tried to drive in to Lewis. Furthermore, having watched Massa over the years, that is not a part of his character. With Schumacher, you had a guy who was prepared to do such things and it was clear to tell. With Massa, he has a lot of respect for his title rivals and is not the kind of guy to do something like that. In addition, Massa had far too much to lose to try such a move. The likelihood of his car suffering suspension damage if he'd actually driven in to Hamilton like you suggest was far too great for him to take the risk as it would put himself and Hamilton out of the race and leave him with a defecit of seven points but now with only two races to go.
It was a silly piece of driving, but nothing more.
I think we both know Massa is a tad hot headed. Just look at his history. The guy was always going off the track even when he was at Sauber.
And to say he has a lot of respect for his title rivals is a joke. After taking Lewis out all Massa had to say was that he didn't deserve the penalty as it was just a racing incident. So much for respect towards Lewis.
He's not hot-headed as such. That was Montoya's trick. Rather, he's an aggressive, fast driver. He was off the track all the time at Sauber because, quite frankly, he was pants. It's taken him a long time to mature to the level that he has but now he's mature enough to be able to keep it on-track, play the points-game and not over-drive when the pressure is on. From the aftermath of Malaysia, we've seen a calmer, much more focussed driver and the amount of effort he has put in is spectacular. To say he has no respect for Hamilton, and indeed his other rivals, is plain ridiculous. He has shown and stated it on many occasions. But once again, the portrayal of a villain has come in to play. It has happened over the years in Formula 1 and, indeed, every sport. People pick a favourite and then turn their opponent into a villain which, in reality, they are not.
