Lewis Hamilton commits to Mercedes until 2025
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has played down the possibility of Felipe Massa winning a legal case to strip Lewis Hamilton of his 2008 world title. Massa lost out to the Brit by a single point all those years ago, and fans will never know how the standings would have turned out without the effects of the infamous ‘crashgate’ scandal.
At the Singapore Grand Prix in 2008, Nelson Piquet Jr was judged to have deliberately crashed, giving a sporting advantage to his Renault team-mate Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard went on to win the race, with Massa suffering a disastrous pit-stop that ultimately saw him finish outside of the points.
Earlier this year, former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone admitted that he and the FIA had knowledge of the scandal at the time, and the results of the Singapore GP should have been voided.
In response, Massa has opened up legal proceedings, and the 42-year-old not only wants compensation for missing out on the Drivers’ Championship, but also to be recognised as the rightful 2008 title winner.
Click here to join our WhatsApp community to be the first to receive breaking and exclusive F1 news.
Don’t miss… Mercedes deny Lewis Hamilton theory as Toto Wolff taken by surprise
However, Wolff doesn’t give Massa much chance of being successful in the courtroom. “I don’t think he has a case, to be honest,” said the Austrian. “We are signing up to sporting regulations. They’re very clear, and you commit as a licence holder.
“If everybody were to open up situations then the sport would be in disarray, and especially when you look at the full championships: there’s so many things that have an influence whether you win or lose that I don’t see the case to be honest.
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
“On the civil case side, I don’t know, let’s evaluate whether there’s some damages that could be claimed. But yeah, for me, this is like watching a telenovela or soap opera playing out in front of me.”
Hamilton waited another six years before getting his hands on his next title, and the Mercedes star has amassed a record-equalling seven at this stage of his career. Massa retired without a single Drivers’ Championship, and the former Ferrari man has spoken passionately about why he is taking matters further.
“We are fighting [to cancel the race result],” he told The Athletic. “This is why we have got together a group of lawyers to fight, because this is the correct thing to do.
“We are pretty confident in the situation. We will fight them to the end because it was not correct. It was not fair for the sport, what’s happened.”
Source: Read Full Article