REPORT: Massa charges that Alonso knew about Piquet crash plan
From his brief tenure at McLaren, we know that Fernando Alonso has a bit of trouble getting along with his teammates. Especially when he doesn't get the clear preferential treatment as the team's #1 driver. After all, as has often been said, a driver's teammate is his chief rival. So after Ferrari confirmed that Alonso and Felipe Massa would be put on equal footing, we smelled some trouble a-brewin'. But we didn't expect it to start at least until the beginning of next season. Turns out, that was a bit premature, as some cracks in the relationship between the two teammates-to-be have already started to show.
Speaking with a group of journalists in his native Brazil where the F1 circus is preparing for this weekend's grand prix, Felipe Massa said with "absolute certainty" that Alonso knew about the plan to have wingman Nelson Piquet crash to hand him the controversial victory. That's a pretty hefty charge levied by his future teammate, and Ferrari naturally scrambled to issue a clarification (which you can read after the jump) but you can't take back what's already been said.
Massa was suitably – and vocally – upset when the Crashgate story broke, because without Alonso's ill-earned victory, Massa would have won the championship last year, instead of losing to Lewis Hamilton by one point at the last corner of the last lap of the last race of the season. Better luck next year, gents.
[Sources: Autosport; Ferrari | Image: Vanderlei Almeida/AFP/Getty]
PRESS RELEASE:
Massa: "Singapore? Enough, let's look ahead"
Sao Paulo, 14 October 2009 - Felipe Massa's comments at a lunch with Brazilian journalists is causing some uproar on the internet. When asked if Alonso might have known about the details of the Singapore affair the Brazilian driver confirmed. Afterwards, level-headed, he wanted to be more specific via the Ferrari website. "What I've said is the outcome of a hunch I've had and is not based on any concrete evidence," Felipe said. "The FIA World Council announced that there was no indication that Fernando may have been informed of what had happened and I respect this outcome. Obviously I'm very disappointed about what transpired last year in Singapore: I have already said several times what I thought about it and now it's time to close that chapter and to look to the future. What is certain is that this episode will not marr in any way the relationship I'll have with Fernando when we will be teammates."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
wslcrew 4:29PM (10/15/2009)
I saw that race last year and Massa lost that race because his pit crew f'd him up in his pitstop! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHuhgC9tEyo
Sure, the crash brought everyone to pit and that may have something to do with it, but blaming his title on Alonso is a bit of stretch!
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mitchw 4:35PM (10/15/2009)
Massa is not blaming Alonso. He is saying that he had to know. Who knows, maybe Alonso is just dumb. As dumb as Massa for shooting his mouth off now.
ken_aisin 7:28PM (10/15/2009)
The next film is titled: "Dumb and Dumber 3 - Treat Me Like a Double World Champ". It'll be a lot more fun to watch than the Hamilton-Alonso saga.
mariahanz 5:42PM (10/31/2009)
True, Nando may have known after the fact but that wasn't part of the investigations by the FIA. Its obvious after the crash many of Renault's engineers also realized what had happened but who is going to come out and blow it for their own team? Like they dont rock the boat.
So massa isnt completely wrong to say Alonso might have known. Its a matter of how and when. In knowing before or after the fact there is a huge difference. The later maybe true with the former being proven untrue.
http://www.alonso-planet.com
Vetmstr 4:29PM (10/15/2009)
2010 is going to be off da chain. 1st
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cool_ozzyfromkalush 10:31PM (10/15/2009)
fail.
Dustin 4:30PM (10/15/2009)
These guys have amazing skills on the track, but their personalities show their true (young) age. An adult would have said, "What's done is done, I have no reason to worry over the past or express hunches in what may have occurred." Instead he in inciting a drama-filled season with his new teammate, just like the Alonso-Hamilton pairing.
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mk15 6:06PM (10/15/2009)
I would call it...
Egotism
1 a : excessive use of the first person singular personal pronoun b : the practice of talking about oneself too much
2 : an exaggerated sense of self-importance
ken_aisin 7:39PM (10/15/2009)
I don't think it has anything to do with age. Remember Mosley vs the team principals during the beginning of the season. Everyone's got a huge childish ego in F1, regardless of how old they are.
Paul 4:32PM (10/15/2009)
Next year is not going to go well for Ferrari. Just like everywhere he's been, Alonso will prove divisive if he isn't the "#1".
But really, does anyone *really* believe Alonso didn't know what was up when the plot was hatched? I mean, c'mon. The reason Ferrari want him so badly is that he's a leader and leaders tend to know what's up. Regardless, I don't think Massa's too happy about having the championship slip after learning how this went down.
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Mayoman 4:48PM (10/15/2009)
Well I can kind of understand why Alonso would want to be #1 on any team, because he has twice as many world championship titles as anyone else on the grid.
It may take him a while to get used to the Ferrari, but once he's done, he will show Massa a thing or two.
and if Kimi goes back to McLaren, ti's going to be a great year. 4 world champions on the grid at once.
Soccer Mom 4:34PM (10/15/2009)
That will be the team to watch next year! Two little guys with Spanish curses, sobs and snivels bitch-slapping each other every time they are not in their cars. I wonder if they will be walked by their moms to the grid.
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Redline 5:17PM (10/15/2009)
Since when does Felipe Massa speak Spanish?
tuna 4:43PM (10/15/2009)
It may look dumb for anyone one involved to speak about it now, but think... what's F1 without drama? what better way to keep it in the news and boost awareness of the series and events besides drama?
It's all good. Every driver is in it to win, by whatever means. If Alonso did know, and since he's had two championships already, if he wants to be a good man, I'd say he owes Masa one. But, not likely, because they are all there to win... and it's good for us, the fans.
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PumaGTO 4:44PM (10/15/2009)
Damn... Massa normaly keeps his diplomacy wisely neutral, but this time either he screwed off big or someone distorced his words to make news. Coming from Autosport I´ll keep some ceticism.
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mitchw 4:47PM (10/15/2009)
Frontal lobe injuries affect personality. People become impetuous, lose inhibition. Maybe something isn't right with FM.
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mk15 4:56PM (10/15/2009)
I was about to mention that, isn't Massa normally diplomatic? Maybe Ferrari should check him into a clinic for further damage control.
larry raines 4:50PM (10/15/2009)
Masa is just afraid for his job, and asserting himself early if he is in fact going to be Alonsos team mate. It is an early pissing match. These guys will make horrible team mates - look at Alonsos track record, throwing temper tantrums if he feels the other team mate is getting more attention.
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Fox 5:40PM (10/15/2009)
Yep I agree.
He is trying to place himself for next year.
No matter what he will do Ferrari will be giving no.1 priority to supporting Alonso.
Should make an interesting year...
David Wiles 6:13PM (10/15/2009)
"without Alonso's ill-earned victory, Massa would have won the championship last year"
That's true only if Massa's crew doesn't screw him out of the win with that awful pit stop. If Alonso hadn't won and Massa had still had his problems, then Hamilton finishes second instead of third and could have finished seventh in Brazil and still won the championship.
This of course leaves aside the steward's decision at Spa which gave Massa a win he didn't earn on the track and demoted Hamilton to third.
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