Felipe Massa has been seeking justice for an incident that occurred 15 years ago. In 2008, Massa narrowly lost the world championship to Lewis Hamilton due to the crash gate controversy. Consequently, he initiated legal proceedings against the FIA in an attempt to overturn the 2008 Singapore GP result in his favor. Meanwhile, amid the ongoing lawsuit, the F1 community learned about Lewis Hamilton‘s choice to join Ferrari. Undoubtedly, his decision has sparked a myriad of opinions and perspectives. Massa believes that the Briton’s decision is solely driven by his desire to secure his eighth championship title.
Like many fans, Massa also had assumed that the Briton would remain with Mercedes till his retirement. However, the Brazilian didn’t hesitate to point out that Mercedes’ lackluster performance in the past two years might have influenced Hamilton’s decision.
During this timeframe, Mercedes didn’t secure any championships, and Hamilton failed to win any Grand Prix. Massa thus believes that considering Hamilton’s respect for Ferrari and Mercedes’ lackluster performance, his decision is less surprising.
The 2008 runner-up told Gazzetta dello Sport, “He [Hamilton] clearly felt that staying in the same place would not allow him to win in the future and looked for another path to try to win his eighth title. It was his last chance to take on a new challenge.”
Finally, Massa asserted that there would be significant changes to the squad once Hamilton joined Ferrari alongside Charles Leclerc. Regarding Hamilton’s perspective, Massa acknowledged his talent but questioned his arrival at Ferrari at the age of 40.
Comparing Hamilton’s move to Ferrari and Michael Schumacher’s move to Mercedes, Massa remarked, “Even Michael Schumacher, when he went to Mercedes, was no longer the same as in his golden seasons in the red car.”
Toto Wolff believes Mercedes owes Lewis Hamilton his eighth World Championship
Over the past 11 years, Lewis Hamilton has been the prominent figure representing Mercedes. During this period, the team achieved tremendous success with Hamilton himself securing 6 of those titles. However, in 2021, Hamilton missed out on winning his eighth world championship under controversial circumstances.
Following those events, the Silver Arrows have encountered considerable challenges. Because of the porpoising problem, the team encountered significant difficulties during the first year of regulation changes. Subsequently, the following year, they faced issues with their zero sidepod concept.
These ongoing challenges led to the Briton experiencing struggles, resulting in his inability to secure a single victory in the past two years. This disappointing performance has deeply concerned Toto Wolff.
Speaking about this matter at Downing Street in July of last year, Wolff said, “We owe him an eighth championship.” However, Hamilton still has one season left with Mercedes, and the team is aiming to secure him his eighth world championship.
However, the dominance of Red Bull makes this a formidable task for the Silver Arrows. Even if Mercedes improve in 2024 and get competitive, Hamilton has already made plans for his future with the Ferrari deal. It will be a team-driver pairing that will be worth watching to see whether they can fulfill their championship ambitions.
