(from automobile) Q. How do you feel? Felipe Massa: Well, I am sure it is not a great feeling. When things looked already finished with only two laps to go and then you just hear something and have a strange feeling in the car as the engine breaks down, for sure it is not a great feeling. I feel really bad, and not happy for what has happened. We did a perfect job today and then we just gave it away because two laps to go is not really a fantastic feeling. I feel very bad but unfortunately this is part of our sport. Now, we need to think forward and we need to think about the next race. We have a little bit of a break now, which will be good to prepare our energy for the last seven races. Q. How confident were you that you had everything under control? FM: Well, I think my race was done on the start. The start was the only place where we could have passed Lewis (Hamilton) and had the opportunity to win the race, so that is why I took a lot of risk. But it worked. I think I made a great start and we showed incredible pace afterwards. I even managed to open the gap, which allowed me to open the gap in front of him some laps shorter than the strategy (demanded). Then we did a perfect job during the first stint and the second stint. My engineer was explaining everything on the radio. The pit stops were great and everything was perfect, and then....the end we know. When Lewis Hamilton had a problem with the tyres I knew straight away and I reduced the rpm of the engine to save everything I could for the end of the race. I had 23 seconds in front of Heikki, so I knew what I had to do. I was not in trouble, the tyres were not in trouble. I was just saving the car until the end of the race, but maybe it was not enough. Q. How encouraging was the pace though, looking forward to the remainder of the season? FM: Well the confidence is there. I think after a race like that, even with the bad result at the end with two laps to go, it still counts what we did in the race. We showed a great performance, a great pace and great teamwork. That is very good for the next races. Q. Did you feel that anything was wrong with the engine before it blew? FM: No. I felt it straight away only when it broke down. Q. Your manoeuvre at the start, had you thought beforehand about what you could do? FM: I was thinking about what to do at the start. But it is always difficult to think before. I was already in my mind thinking that I could pass Heikki, because I was on the clean side and we have a great start normally. So I had a great start, I passed him and then I knew already that the only way to pass Lewis is to be in the tow and maybe gain some speed. That is exactly what I did. I was in the tow. He went completely to the inside and then I try everything around the outside and it worked. For sure that was the only possibility to win the race. Q. Was the end of the race the most frustrating moment you've had in your career? FM: Not the most, but I think it was one of the most frustrating. When you have a problem and you are not in a good position, you still have the excuse to say, 'okay the position was not great anyway.' But when you have a problem, when you are first with a perfect race, one of the best, it is very frustrating. Q. Were you surprised how easy it was to keep McLaren under control? FM: 50/50. Yesterday, for sure, what was the most important thing and what people look at is who started first and second. So I started third and it doesn't look very good. But what I did in Q2 proves we had a good car. I did a great lap. I showed the whole potential of the car and then in the race, in one direction I was surprised because they were quicker and I expected to be very, very strong. But on the other hand I was not so surprised because I knew we did a good job and we had a good car, so that was enough to keep the concentration and push even more. Q. Has there been any answer about the engine? FM: I think they are analysing it now. I am not sure what happened, but it was a very strong feeling. The engine broke straight away in a very big way, so I don't know what happened. Q. This year you have had brake problems and now an engine failure. The reliability is proving to be a problem for Ferrari? FM: I mean, it is difficult to say but for sure when you have a problem you can say that we are not at 100 percent. When you are at 100 percent, it means you finish with both cars in a very good position. This time we cannot say that everything is at 100 percent. We still need to push hard on developing the car, but also on the reliability. But I mean, in the worst case, we are still completely in the championship fight and we still have seven races until the end. For sure we are going to push very hard in these three weeks in the factory to solve the problems and improve the areas that we need to improve. Q. After a performance like that, do you feel you are becoming a team leader? FM: Well, I feel that I am in a very strong position in terms of me. So I think I am still growing a lot and getting stronger and stronger race by race, so for sure that can help for the championship, the confidence, and that is the most important thing. At the moment everything is completely open, we have three cars in a very small gap in terms of points. Everything is open and full of opportunity to fight for the championship.
Q. How do you feel? Felipe Massa: Well, I am sure it is not a great feeling. Q. How confident were you that you had everything under control? I think I made a great start and we showed incredible pace afterwards. These are the two greatest understatements of the year. You THINK you made a great start??? Felipe, you made the best start of this F1 season, if I could remember, maybe the last few seasons!!! I apprecaite your positive attitude looking to the future. You just surpassed Dale Jr. as my favorite driver. Raikkonen/Massa, the best driver combination in F1!!
i was please to see massa take a more aggressive attitude on the start and not bend over for hamilton although right now i'm despondent.
Ron, Dale Jr. is/was your favorite driver? You're full of surprises Agreed, Kimi/Phil is the best 1-2 punch in F1. That's why Ferrari is leading Constructor's points with what most people agree is an inferior car.
Yes, I was a Dale Sr fan, no one in racing had car control like Dale Sr. And Kimi/Felipe get along, despite the tight WDC championship, you do not see them do an Alonso/Hamilton routine.
has anyone checked that McLarenSoft ECU ?? Felipe, great race, Kimi .... WAKE UP !!!!!!! what is the point of posting the fastest lap at the end of the race ?? if you can do that then, then how about doing it towards the end of each fuel stint ??!! This is where MS was brilliant AND he did it here about 10 years ago with a genuinely inferior car by doing qualifying laps for at least 10 laps prior to his fuel stops and passing the McLunkens each time during those laps and fuel stops. Kimi needs a fire lit under him, Felipe should be chosen now by Ferrari to be the WDC contender Massa reminds me of Alberto Ascari, once in the lead they are untouchable
I was going to post on the Mass sucks page but thought why bother. I have liked this guy from the get go and MS said one of the reasons he "voluntarily" stepped aside was to give Felipe a chance. I cant believe the luck! Ferrari has had very few engine failures in the last few years and this is very sad. Although I detest McLaren its is good to see anyone win his first race so Im glad it was Heiki not Lewis. My thoughts on Kimi is that he should party more between seasons and less the night before the race! There is no question in "my" mind that I think Massa is the strongest on the team. A sad day for all tifosi but there is still time to pull this one off!
Massa did an excellent job today, and I feel awful for him. I feel awful for the entire team. That's just racing. I often shake my head in bewilderment at Kimi. He may be the reigning WDC, but is he justifying his absurdly rich contract? How long can the disparity continue between the driver's pay situation? Unless KR gets the lead out, I see a contract re-negotiation for him. To count him out, of course, would be a mistake and premature, but, as mentioned, if he has the speed in him, he needs to be getting on with it throughout the race weekend. Particularly in Quali and the race itself. Pacing himself until the last stint on Sunday just isn't going to cut the mustard against an aggressive team like McL and a hungry driver like LH. That said, we watched LH implode last year and KR be the beneficiary of his mistakes. Maybe he thinks he can just lay in the weeds keeping close until the last 2-3 races and then turn it up? CW
I had a couple of margaritas last night and really did not get fully going until halfway in the day.....
There it is in a nutshell. Felipe has the passion to be a quick, if somewhat inconsistent driver. Kimi is a more subtle approach, quietly collecting points while tweaking his setups. Both are picking up points, but with different styles. Both are contributing to the WCC. Both are still candidates for WDC. And this is *way* more interesting than watching Rubens pull over for Shumi. (And more dignified than watching Fred and Lewis throw things at each other.)
Thanks for posting this it was a great interview and it still sucks to think about what happened to Massa today. Hopefully the break will be good for Ferrari so they can get everything sorted out and ready to finish the season strong.
i really hope they won't damage the winnin combo of Massa/Kimster. i think Massa did a helluva job at Hungary, and Kimster, a below par quali, did a solid job, could have even taken 2nd place if not the Vettel incident, great recovery as always. why would they want to bring Fernando in and spoil a great team now?
Finally some gutsy, in-your-face driving, giving LH a taste of his own medicine! Great, great race from Massa! Shades of MS retiring with an engine failure in Japan a few years ago...
The last few races, Kimi has improved at the end of the race after switching from the hard tires to the softs. He should have been on the option tire the entire race.
