Chads996

Personally speaking, I like Massa as a driver. But it seems, something is not quite right with the man. Before his accident, Massa was an intense competitor / driver. Always near the front, always holding his line, etc. Taking the sub-par chassis out of the equation, is he still the same driver he was before the spring incident/accident? Similar story compared to Barrichello, has the accident affected him? Has it made him pause whereas before he did not?

Discuss...

C.

TwentySix

I do think the accident took something out of him, and I'm sorry for that, he was lucky to escape with his life. We all know F1 is not a venue where empathy gets you places on the grid, and if you can't do the job, there are others waiting in the wings.

Felipe used to do a lot of crashing when he first came on the scene, and in 2002 lost his ride at the end of the racing season when Peter Sauber replaced him with H-H Frentzen, only offering Massa the test seat, and he refused. Then he went to Ferrari as a test driver where he seemed to mature some.

This article is from 2005:

http://www.f1network.net/main/s200/st64626.htm

Peter Sauber has a knack for spotting young talent, having given Kimi Raikkonen his start in 2001. To replace Raikkonen, who had moved to McLaren in 2002, Sauber found a talented 20 year old Brazilian named Felipe Massa. Massa's road to Formula One was similar to many of today's other successful drivers by starting in local karting events at the age of nine. He spent the next seven years karting until moving up to the Brazilian Formula Chevrolet Championship in 1998. He only claimed fifth place in his first year, but succeeding in winning the championship in 1999. Then he made the big move to Europe. In his debut in 2000 he won both the Italian and European Formula Renault Championships. 2001 saw him move up to dominate the European Formula 3000 Championship, winning six out of the eight races.

His entry into Formula One in 2002 was not as successful as his past three years. He had several testing shunts before the season even started, leading many to doubt his skills from the start. In his first grand prix in Australia, he was taken out in the big first turn accident. He redeemed himself in Malaysia though, taking sixth place and his first championship point. The rest of the season was a mix of highs and lows for Massa. He had eight DNF's total, half of which involved crashes and spins. But when he finished, he finished strong. Of his eight finishes, he was never lower than ninth place. He claimed three additional points with a fifth place finish in Spain and sixth at the Nurburgring. What he lacked in consistency he made up for in raw speed.

Towards the end of the season, things were looking grim for the Brazilian rookie. Massa became very outspoken against the team after the German grand prix when they ordered him to pull over to let Heidfeld pass for the final points paying position. Sauber also was quick to sign veteran Heinz-Harald Frentzen to replace Massa for 2003. At the Italian grand prix, the stewards declared it was Massa who caused an avoidable accident with Pedro De La Rosa's Jaguar and Massa became the first driver to be penalized by losing ten grid positions at the next race, the US grand prix. Sauber sidestepped the penalty by allowing Frentzen to race instead, while Massa could only watch it on television from his home in Brazil. Massa ended his difficult year in Japan by crashing out on his own early in the race.

At the end of the season, Peter Sauber offered Massa the role of test driver with the team which Massa quickly refused. When talks with other teams about a race seat yielded no results, Massa moved to Ferrari to become their second test driver. A year with the Italian team has proven very valuable to Massa. He has honed his skills by learning with some of the best drivers of the day, Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello. He set a new lap record at Ferrari's private test track, Fiorano, which held until the F2004 made its debut. Sauber monitored his progress throughout the 2003 season, and decided that his driving and his attitude had matured well enough to earn him back his race seat.

Massa justified Sauber's trust in him in 2004. Despite a difficult first race in Australia where he suffered a spin and a blown engine, his driving throughout the season showed greater maturity and consistency. He suffered only four DNF's all season. Not a single one was due to an "at fault" accident, allowing him to overcome his reputation as a "crasher". He finished strong as well scoring points in five races. His best results included a 4th place in Belgium and a 5th place at Monaco. The highlight of his year though was his home grand prix in Brazil. He qualified a strong 4th and led the race for two laps while the track was still damp. Although he later finished 8th it was still a race he could be proud of.

DCP

As screwed up as Ferrari seems to be, it has been very loyal to Massa.

TheOtherEric

Before the season started, I said Massa won't make it halfway through the season before Ferrari scapegoats him and brings in a young driver. I'm sticking with that, seeing his lousy performances and the pressure on Ferrari.

He was, what, one point away from being World Champion? But now he's just not performing, and his accident seems to be the turning point.

Chads996

Exactly what it appears to me as well. That said, his driving has changed. No where near the risks he used to. Even his defending moves seem to be...well, different.

C.

multi21

Massa has been dealt a hand that is difficult to recover from. To be in F1 you have to be extremely tough from a mental stand point because you are being critiqued and evaluated on an off the track by a global media and from within your own garage.

From what I saw, Massa was never the most mentally tough driver. He had a great season and was not only 1 point from WDC, but more like 2 corners from WDC. I have to imagine that took a lot out of his sails. The accident the following year just sealed the deal.

In my mind, Ferrari has been more than fair and loyal to Massa. I'm surprised they still have him around, but the calls for his head in the Italian media are deafening. The problem is that without testing, you can't just plug someone in there. They need time to get used to the car's behavior, controls on the steering wheel, brake bias, etc. See the experiment with Fischicella for reference.

aj986s

And IIRC, Massa's wife was expecting with their first child when he had the accident in 2009. I sometimes wonder if the thought of coming so close to never seeing his kid might have affected him, too.

500

Good discussion here... Lots of thoughtful, valid points.

For my part I am in agreement that he is not quite as good since the accident. However, I also feel he was never at Alonso's level at any previous time in his career either.

Ferrari have stuck by him, and I think they will see the year out with him. At this stage, it looks like they will struggle to have a constructor's championship-winning car and so, they may not see it as so crucial to move Massa out.

On the other hand, if Ferrari's car progresses to the point where Alonso can squeeze the odd oportunisitc win out, and stay within shouting distance of the championship, then Ferrari would want someone who can consistently take points from the other drivers...

Dave 86 930 Fl

Ferrari may be showing Massa some loyalty, but I'm sure that Ferrari is getting an earful from their sponsors to make a change.

gums

I didn't think he'd make it to the end of last season, I'm really surprised that he's still on the team at this point. Not to be cold, but let's face it; you've got to produce in that world.

Benton

He seems like a great dude, but I think it's more likely we will see him at LeMans this year than Valencia.

Ray S

He does seem to have lost his edge since the accident. Kudos for Ferrari for supporting him to this point, however I think they have given him ample time to get back to 100% and he just doesn't appear to be there.

Chads996

With all that was riding when he had his accident (forgot about the kid thing too), I have to agree with the others...I think the accident was the straw the broke him.

Do you ever get 100% after something that traumatic? Think about it...not sure I could.

C.

gums

I was an innocent victim a few years ago at the start of a PCA fun race, of all things. I was blindsided and my car was destroyed and I was injured. It was only my second club race. It took me a long time, not to mention a lot of money (and a surgery) to get my nerve back during starts. I am told that I still drive too carefully, but I'm OK with that, and I've had many great results. Pro's may be different, in that they just trot back to the backup car, but speaking for myself, I can understand how one is affected. But, if you're getting paid, you've got to show results. He hasn't for a long time. I imagine that he has a huge Brazilian following, but beyond that, it's over.

RajDatta

He was actually WDC for a brief period before Hammy passed Timo Glock on the last turn of the last lap of the last race of the season and took away the WDC. Massa's family was actually celebrating and then all of a sudden the mood changed. From what I have heard, Timo had to be smuggled out of the country.
Ferrari needs a strong second driver. It would have been fun to watch Kimi and Alonso race together. Now that would have been a dream team.