In recent months, Felipe Massa has spoken out about the crashgate, the manipulated incident that occurred in Singapore in 2008, costing him the driver’s championship. The issue resurfaced after an interview with Ecclestone in which the British man admitted that everyone knew the truth, but no one did anything. Given these new accusations, the Brazilian has decided to appeal to a team of lawyers to overturn the case and seek justice.
The words of the former Ferrari driver to Autosprint are harsh and filled with bitterness, not so much for the race he lost but for the lack of sportsmanship and the desire to reclaim what was stolen from him: “Regarding the topic in the spotlight, I can tell you that I obviously found out about the Singapore incident during the 2009 season, which means months after the events at the end of 2008. I immediately considered it the greatest manipulation ever to take place within a motorsport race, effectively turning it into a stolen race. Furthermore, at the time, I sought advice from Ferrari’s lawyers on what to do, but they told me that too much time had passed, the title had been awarded, and there was nothing more to be done. By law, we could no longer attempt to change things.” – the former Ferrari driver explained.
“They didn’t want to tarnish the Formula 1’s image.”
So, what triggered the spark is not so much the scandal of the incident but the reason for not taking action: they did not want to tarnish Formula 1’s reputation and submit honor to entertainment and reputation. “But when we recently learned directly from Bernie Ecclestone’s words that the sports authorities and all those in power were perfectly aware of the sporting fraud committed in Singapore, yet decided not to do anything, that is, not to nullify that race, in order not to destroy the image of Formula 1, it was a real blow to my heart. Finding out and coming to terms with how things had gone down in this manner made me experience unique emotions and go through a difficult time. However, from there, I had the certainty that, in the name of justice, it is absolutely necessary to try to claim the title that was stolen from us,” Felipe Massa continued.
What hurt the former driver the most is that it was not just him who suffered an injustice, but also his country and the fans: “The title was stolen from me, of course, as a driver, but also from my country, Brazil, from the fans, from Ferrari itself, from my family, and from history itself because the true facts indicate that by applying the rules, I am the world champion and no one else.”
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