Felipe Massa filed a lawsuit against the FIA and FOM for his 2008 F1 world championship loss due to the infamous Crashgate scandal. Now, a legal expert, as per Business F1, revealed that the steps taken by Massa could land him in jail if he fails to prove the lawsuit’s worth.
The former Ferrari driver aims to extract compensation from the governing bodies because of his championship loss to Lewis Hamilton by just one point. For this, he now needs to seek special permission from the London High Court because he is not a British citizen.
However, the legal expert added more weight to the already complicated case as it seems to fade away with time. Even after Massa’s lawyers asked for Hamilton’s assistance and were ready with pressing documents, it is highly unlikely that the case will stand.
Felipe Massa needs to prove to save himself from jail time
A legal expert, who wanted to remain anonymous dissected the lawsuit filed by Massa. He added that the former Ferrari driver would face three blockades before he could go ahead with the case.
Even though the first two [Special permission and British citizen] can be overcome, the main issue will be around the last hurdle. On this, the report of Business F1 stated, “Both obstacles can be overcome if Massa’s lawyers can prove that London is the best venue and Massa only heard about the reason for the loss of World Championship within the last three years.”
Following this, the report also stated, “The last point would be impossible to argue and to establish it, would almost certainly involve Massa committing perjury, which carries a potential seven-year jail sentence.” Therefore, Massa hardly has a choice now except to fail.
Is Massa deemed to fail with his lawsuit?
Despite Massa’s try to salvage something from the 2008 F1 World Championship, if not the title, the Brazilian is likely to fail. This is certain because no law in the motorsport world guarantees a reverse of judgment after a decade.
Given the time-out argument is huge, according to Motorsport.com, the FIA’s own International Sporting Code says that they do not entertain any request after two weeks of the incident and at least four days before the FIA prize-giving ceremony.
Furthermore, the only witness, Bernie Ecclestone, has also denied making any statement regarding this and said Massa is doing everything for money. Therefore, Felipe Massa and his $13 million compensation have a large chance of seeing a dead end.
