Felipe Massa discusses odds of reversing Lewis Hamilton's 2008 F1 title
The Brit secured his first of seven titles with McLaren sixteen years ago
Felipe Massa believes he has "every possibility" of overturning the 2008 World Championship - which was narrowly won by Lewis Hamilton.
The Brit secured his first of seven titles with McLaren sixteen years ago following a thrilling final race at Sao Paulo - Massa's home Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver clinched victory and thought he had secured the championship, only for Hamilton to execute a last-lap overtake, claiming the title instead.
Last week, it was confirmed that Massa had initiated legal proceedings against Formula 1, the FIA, and former F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone over the championship result, prompted by the controversy surrounding the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, which was won by Fernando Alonso.
The race became infamous due to the 'Crashgate' scandal, wherein Nelson Piquet Jr deliberately crashed to aid his Renault teammate Alonso in securing victory. Massa had been leading before a disastrous pit stop resulted in him leaving with the fuel nozzle still attached, ultimately leading to a 13th-place finish.
Despite the race's controversy, the result remained unchanged. Alonso retained his race win, and Hamilton secured valuable points by finishing third, which later proved decisive in the final standings.
Massa has told RacingNews365 on his chances: “I think I’ve said everything I’m supposed to say about that. I said in the interviews, it’s something that we will fight until the end, and this is the only thing I can say, it does not depend on me anymore. It depends on the lawyers. We have a very, very good group of people, professional people working on that.
“I really believe that we have a bigger case and every possibility to win the case. But to be honest, it’s not on me anymore. The only thing I can say is that we are fighting for the justice, because it was not fair what happened to me. As I said, that’s the only thing I can say.”
Massa's lawyers previously hoped that Hamilton would give up the world title in the spirit of sporting integrity. They said previously: “He is an important ambassador for the sport and has always defended sporting integrity. He is an honorary Brazilian citizen and very well liked by Brazilians, so I hope he will support us. We have absolutely nothing against Hamilton.”
Massa meanwhile failed to challenge for a championship following 2008. The Brazilian continued to race for Ferrari until 2014 and then moved to Williams, where he saw out his career until his retirement in 2017.
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