I did not realise massa is in fact an Italian.

Where did you hear that? I think Massa is the type of driver to "endear" himself with the Italians by speaking Italian and generally being an honest, likable person. But ultimate popularity is determined on the track, and although he came within a breath of the title he's still considered soft.

 

Latin temperament, lifelong passion for Ferrari, fluency in Italian, and a belief by the tifosi and Ferrari management that he's the best driver on the grid: Those are the reasons for his very high popularity among the tifosi, whether you agree with them or not.

Schuey was greatly admired and reswpected but not really loved. Extraordinary results from arguably F1's greatest champion of all time, and an incredible and recognized professional competence, but he never learnt fluent Italian, he repeatedly acted disrespectfully when the Italian anthem was played, and he always gave the impression (again, to the Tifosi), that his loyalty to Ferrari was very limited. Time proved that in this last point at least the Tifosi were right. Furthermore, he is German, and an Italian will take a Spaniard over a German any day.

Massa is rightly or wrongly just not considered to be in the same league as FA and MS.

One point of common appreciation for MS and FA is their ability, greatly admired by Italians, to break rules without getting caught. They are both considered masters of rule bending.

Check out the articles and the fora on the Gazzetta dello Sport website. It's all there, and it provides an excellent contrast of opinions with the Anglo-Saxon sites (such as Fchat). Speaking and reading Italian is not only an advantage for a Ferrari F1 driver; it also helps any F1 fan to acquire a more balanced view of personalities and performances.

 

Italians and the Italian press. Anybody who only reads Fchat posts or only reads the British press might have a different impression.

 

That's fine. I live in the US, and suffice it to say our press doesn't delve very deeply into the lineage of grand prix drivers. But all these years, the Massa I've known:

Was born in Sao Paulo, raised in Brazil
Worn the Brazilian colors on his helmet
Worn the Brazilian flag on his suit
Played the Brazilian anthem after victory
Considered Brazil his home GP
Lives in Brazil in the off-season

Apparently he has Italian heritage somewhere along the line, and I agree that Brazilians and Italians share a similar passion for life. But why now does he appear to be playing an "Italian card"? To a pedestrian fan like myself, it comes off as a touch of pandering.

 

I agree.

 

Excellent points and I had not thought of it from that perspective. It is just like in American baseball, where some Japanese players are good, but the fact that they are foreigners and don't speak any english severely curtails their popularity... They are respected for their ability, but these factors limit their ability to relate to the fans and they are not as popular.

By nature, people always relate better to someone who is the same nationality (or virtually the same nationality) and speaks the same language... there's more common ground and are regarded as more relatable...

Frank

 

Massa is brazilian, i believe his Grand pa is italian which gives him the Italian Nationality (if he asks for it..).

 

From one perspective it is possible to conclude it is pandering. But I would say that there is always a kinship with those whose heritage you share.

I am American, fly an American flag in my yard, carry an American passport, and would fight for my country. But I am of Greek descent, and I took some pride when they hosted the Olympics, and won the Euro cup in football. Likewise, I am more disappointed when Greece looks so bad because of their financial disaster and political corruption.

Even though he is Brazilian, I can see how Massa can have pride in being of Italian descent and driving for Ferrari and fighting for podiums in Italy more than driving for other teams or racing in other countries.

 

No surprise here. Massa has always said he's family is of Italian descent.
There is a large/visible Italian community in Brazil and they identify themselves as Brazilians of Italian origin.

Barrichello and other Brazilian drivers are the same case.

 

JV?

 

Wow...i knew he spoke fluent Italian and Spanish, but Italian passport? Never heard that one. Does Schumi have one?

 

I recall reading about how relatively easy it is to establish citizenship in many European countries when you have ancestry going back. A friend of mine looked into it when he got divorced--he's several generations removed from Italy and was considering moving there and getting a job. It wasn't going to be much of a challenge to get citizenship.

Regarding Massa, I don't question his ancestry nor his affinity for it. I've just never heard him talk about it before. Really, the comment he made is benign enough, given he just finished on the podium at the Italian GP. But there's something that feels desperate about it, as if he's playing a popularity game in the wake of TeamOrdersGate.

 

It's pretty easy to get a dual nationality passport for most EU countries. Swiss passports aren't easy to get though, and that's the one you want .

 

Massa is about as Italian as Dario Franchitti.

 

Try to get dual nationality in the EU without residence...

No one needs Swiss passport, but what everyone wants is a Swiss residence certificate...

 

I've got one, but I've never figured out what good it does me.

 

I've known for a while that Massa is of Italian heritage, but only because Wikipedia told me so (and Varsha may have mentioned it once or twice).