The Title Lost at the Last Moment
At Ferrari, all the focus is currently on the new lineup formed by Charles Leclerc and newcomer Lewis Hamilton, with whom the team aims to win a Drivers’ Championship that has been missing since 2007. That season, the British driver came close to securing the world title in his rookie F1 season with McLaren, only to claim it the following year in a nightmare finale for former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa. In his home race, the Brazilian crossed the finish line as world champion, only to lose the title moments later when Lewis Hamilton overtook Timo Glock on the final corner, securing the necessary position at the last moment to win the championship by just one point.
The ‘Crashgate’ Scandal
At the time, the idea of Hamilton driving for Ferrari was unimaginable, but 2008 remains a year of regrets for Massa, also due to another driver: Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard, who later drove for Ferrari from 2010 to 2014 and came close to winning the championship twice, was Felipe Massa’s teammate from 2010 to 2013. In 2008, while racing for Renault, Alonso won the Singapore Grand Prix in an incident that went down in history as ‘Crashgate.’ The current Aston Martin driver secured victory thanks to his teammate, Nelson Piquet Jr., crashing into the barriers on purpose to help Alonso win. The scandal later proved decisive in shaping the world championship standings.
The Criticism
Felipe Massa has never forgotten the episode and, in an interview with *Relevo*, criticized Fernando Alonso for never apologizing: “He is an incredible driver,” the 43-year-old stated. “He is one of the greatest talents in F1, without a doubt, but that doesn’t change what I think of him regarding the 2008 incident. Fernando did not behave well. He never spoke about it, and that’s a shame because his greatness as a driver does not match the way he acted in that situation. He claimed he knew nothing, but he covered everything up. It’s unacceptable because we are talking about a great sportsman.” – the former Ferrari driver pointed out.
Two Personalities
Despite his criticism, Felipe Massa clarified that the two are not on bad terms: “I never had problems with Fernando, but he has always had two personalities,” he added. “One that he showed publicly and another that he revealed behind closed doors. He was focused only on himself, and in 2010, he had an outstanding season, deserving to win. Perhaps he lost the title due to a strategic mistake. He lost two world championships in the final race, and I believe everything happens for a reason. Nothing in our lives is the result of chaos.” – the Brazilian concluded.
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