Because of the Crashgate scandal that cost him the world title back in 2008, Felipe Massa is actively pursuing legal action against F1 and the FIA. He wants to reclaim the 2008 championship from Lewis Hamilton. However, amid the ongoing legal dispute, Massa just revealed some fascinating behind-the-scenes information about how the scandal came to light.
The 2008 runner-up discussed his thoughts on the Crashgate controversy in an exclusive Track Limit Podcast. During the interview, Massa was asked if he knew about the suspicious situation right away or if he had to wait for any information concerning Nelson Piquet Jr. contentious decision to become public. In response, the Brazilian remarked that following Piquet’s accident and Alonso’s shocking win, doubts had started to cross his mind.
However, he made sure to state that he believed that the team and his decision not to face the matter right away was due to the lack of hard evidence, which kept them from opening an official investigation. Adding on to that, Massa later acknowledged that he might’ve been “too nice” to regard the emotional incident as a manipulated event.
Besides, he added that if they had disputed the circumstances at the beginning, things might have turned out differently and an investigation might have started sooner. During his conversation, the Brazilian said, “We didn’t really fight because we believe it was a manipulation, you know, otherwise if we started fighting straight away everything would have been different over there and the investigation would have started.”
How Did Felipe Massa seek clarity on the 2009 Crashgate scandal?
The 2008 season finale at Interlagos presented two very different narratives. The first saw Lewis Hamilton’s jubilation following his first Championship victory. and Then, the second saw Felipe Massa suffer a heartbreak. However, a year later, some of the events started to come together, giving Massa hope.
Rumors regarding the Crashgate controversy began to surface in Formula One in 2009. However, there was little hard proof. Massa’s concerns increased as he faced two crucial events that fueled his suspicions to even greater degrees. He explained that one such incident happened in Bahrain, where Massa and Nicholas Todt had dinner together with Flavio Briatore. And in a suspenseful manner when Massa asked Briatore about the race he was received with a verbal guarantee that didn’t seem genuine.
The second pivotal incident occurred between Massa and Nelson Piquet Jr. during an Italian karting test where in a bid to get clarification. Massa approached Piquet about his possible role in purposefully causing the incident in Singapore.
Revealing the incident in his own words Masa said, ” I went together with Nelson Piquet and I asked him, you know in the plane if he did that On purpose. And the way he answered to me was very similar to the way Flavio answered, no, I would never do that. But the way he kind of laughing it was not straightforward.”
These encounters strengthened Massa’s increasing sense that something was wrong with the Crashgate affair. However, it wasn’t until Bernie Ecclestone made his remarks that Massa felt compelled to file a lawsuit in an attempt to regain the championship.
