Felipe Massa

Felipe Massa fears McLaren’s F-duct system could make life complicated for the rest of the field in this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, with the Woking squad set to have a crucial advantage on the Shanghai track’s long back straight.

The straight between Turn 13 and the Turn 14 hairpin in China is one of the longest in Formula 1, and sees top speeds in excess of 300km/h.

The F-duct – which allows the team to increase its top speed by ‘stalling’ the rear wing on straights – helped McLaren set the practice pace at Sepang, which also features long straights, although the weather then disrupted the rest of the team’s weekend.

Massa thinks Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button’s straightline speed will be a huge boost for them in China, and that rivals might have to compromise their set-ups to try and contain the McLarens on the straight.

“It’s a nice circuit to drive and the extremely Read the rest of this entry »

Felipe Massa believes his best-ever finish in the Australian Grand Prix can help him challenge for the world title this season.

After finishing second in the season opener in Bahrain, the Brazilian took third in Melbourne today after several wheel-to-wheel fights, and held off Ferrari team-mate Fernando Alonso.

“I had a fantastic start, without wheelspin, and I saw many cars, especially Fernando and [Mark] Webber having some wheelspin,” said Massa. “I did a very smooth start and passed them in a very good way. I was happy with the start and whole race was very difficult, very slippery and low grip everywhere.

“My best result in Australia before Read the rest of this entry »

Felipe Massa said he was thrilled to mark his return to Formula 1 with a second place finish, even though he lost out to his ultimately victorious Ferrari team-mate Fernando Alonso at the start.

The Brazilian had out-qualified his new stablemate yesterday as they took second and third on the grid, but Alonso slipped ahead on the opening lap. He was then ideally placed to grab the lead when Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull faltered.

But although he missed out on the win, Massa was still delighted to be second after the long lay-off enforced by the head injuries he sustained at the Hungaroring last year.

“First of all I think it is fantastic to be here, so thanks a lot that everything is great,” Massa said. “Being here with a competitive car and going through the whole race with good pace, so thanks to God I am fine and thanks to everybody who was supporting me in a difficult time.

“The race was really good and fantastic for us. For sure Read the rest of this entry »

Felipe Massa was delighted with his performance on his return to competitive action after qualifying in second place for the Bahrain grand Prix.

The Ferrari driver had not taken part in any official sessions since his crash at last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix, where he was sidelined for the rest of the year.

But Massa showed on Saturday he had not lost any of his competitive edge, finishing only behind Sebastian Vettel and ahead of team-mate Fernando Alonso.

“First of all, congratulations to Sebastian who did a great job for first race of the season,” said Massa. “It is nice to be back racing and competitive in the right direction. I feel happy to be back after such a difficult time.

“I was watching races on TV but Read the rest of this entry »

Felipe Massa believes Ferrari could enjoy its best start to a season for several years given its performance in winter testing.

The Italian squad was quickest throughout the first test at Valencia and remained among the front pack throughout the month, while also having very few reliability issues.

Massa reckons his team will therefore not only put its 2009 misery behind it, but can get off to an even stronger start than it did when battling for titles in the previous three seasons.

“I am very happy and very motivated that we can start the championship in a better way not just than last year, which was not a very good year, but also than the other championships,” he told the official Ferrari website.

“It looks like we are in good condition to start the championship with Read the rest of this entry »

Felipe Massa has hit out at the new teams joining Formula 1 this season, suggesting that their relatively slow pace is bad for the championship and could pose a danger for the frontrunners.

Massa’s Ferrari team has been strongly critical of the way the increased F1 entry was handled, and the Brazilian said the newcomers’ lack of speed is a concern for him too.

“I hope they won’t be a danger,” said Massa in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reprinted on Ferrari’s website.

“There are six/seven teams one second apart while those teams are four seconds behind. It’s not good for the sport and not good for them: it’s like two different series.

“They’ll suffer. And we’ll suffer too, when we have them in front of us during qualifying.”

Lotus and Virgin were several seconds off the pace in pre-season testing, but are confident they will get up to speed given time and mileage, while fellow newcomer Hispania will not run until Bahrain next weekend.

Matt Beer – Autosport