In the round-up: As he leaves Ferrari Felipe Massa tells Fernando Alonso he won’t be getting any more favours on the track.
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Massa bids Ferrari farewell (Ferrari)
“Finally Felipe had an affectionate word for his friend and team-mate Fernando Alonso, joking about the incident in the 2010 German Grand Prix. ‘Thanks also to you Fer, we will meet again on track and this time I will try not to let you through.'”
Brawn excited by ‘extreme’ 2014 rules (Autosport)
“I think it’s going to be a pretty extreme case next year. I’ve been involved in those situations more than once, 1994 was a good example, 2009 was a good example and I’m sure there are ones in between that don’t come to mind!”
Vettel awarded BBC Overseas prize (BBC)
“Sebastian Vettel has been named the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year after winning his fourth successive Formula One world championship.”
Tweets
Last official Ferrari event for @Felipe1Massa with @abracing73 @OfficialFisico @marc_gene @rigondavide @R_Marciello pic.twitter.com/RcH1aXqtQK
— andrea bertolini (@abracing73) December 15, 2013
Tools for the job, 80s style. #vintageMcLaren pic.twitter.com/dETarE8Fcp
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) December 15, 2013
- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Comment of the day
@TimothyKatz has bad news for Luca di Montezemolo:
‘I for one am definitely sick of coming second,’ Montezemolo added.
You didn?t. You came third.
@TimothyKatz
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On this day in F1
Genii Capital took over the Renault F1 team four years ago today.
Image ?? Ferrari/Ercole Colombo
obviously
16th December 2013, 0:06
I just hope he doesn’t moan too much when he gets a drive-through for ignoring blue flags…
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
16th December 2013, 8:25
lol I hope Williams is better than that but Massa may see himself in trouble anyway, I’m not expecting Massa to be any faster than Bottas and by far.
celeste (@celeste)
16th December 2013, 0:24
hehe nice COTD :D
George (@george)
16th December 2013, 0:27
When he’s getting lapped?
mantresx (@mantresx)
16th December 2013, 2:57
Today’s COTD? hehe
Jazz
16th December 2013, 0:30
I really can’t imagine it’ll be any problem for Fernando, the only time Massa will have to let Fernando through will be when the blue flags are waving.
Chris (@tophercheese21)
16th December 2013, 0:33
Massa said that towards the end of last season, and he would either already be behind Alonso, or Fernando would overtake him on merit.
Atleast it was good to see Ferrari’s semi-battling for once.
I doubt Massa will be anywhere near the front of the grid to trouble Alonso next year.
Joe Papp (@joepa)
16th December 2013, 8:49
And yet no one expected Pastor Maldonado to win a GP for Williams last year either…
Chris (@tophercheese21)
17th December 2013, 8:22
And so people expected Williams to continue the upward curve for 2013, but no one expected them to fail.
Kingshark (@kingshark)
16th December 2013, 0:40
Given how accustomed Felipe has gotten to jumping out of Fernando’s way over the years, it wouldn’t surprise me if he continued with the trend in 2014 despite them driving for seperate teams.
hunocsi (@hunocsi)
16th December 2013, 1:00
He didn’t let Alonso through in Abu Dhabi so he’s kept his words already.
Mashiat (@)
16th December 2013, 4:37
Japan. Not Abu Dhabi.
hunocsi (@hunocsi)
16th December 2013, 8:06
Then that time too.
Joe Papp (@joepa)
16th December 2013, 8:48
kinda like Hamilton pulling into Macca pit box, right?! lol… Oh Lewis!
Chad (@chaddy)
16th December 2013, 1:08
I, for one, welcome our new bull overlords
evered7 (@evered7)
16th December 2013, 1:34
Maybe Massa is suffering from a disease called Alons(o)bsession.
It is better to move-on and focus on getting points for his new team. No one expects him to let Alonso pass by. he didn’t do it during the Abu-Dhabi GP.
I am sure Ferrari know they have no control over Williams.
MattDS
16th December 2013, 9:04
Just read the referenced article. He said that on the Ferrari event and it was all in good understanding. No need to now bash him for it as if he has “some kind of disease”.
evered7 (@evered7)
16th December 2013, 14:30
That was not bashing. I said he must move-on from that incident. Isn’t going to help him in anyway in his new team and this was 3 years ago. A lot of water should have passed under the bridge.
Similar to Monty who keeps saying Massa was 2008 champion for seconds.
Baron (@baron)
16th December 2013, 20:00
It was a joke for goodness sake…..
evered7 (@evered7)
17th December 2013, 2:24
Cool down. Just my opinion, not to start a debate.
@HoHum (@hohum)
16th December 2013, 1:53
Thanks for that link in the forum @keithcollantine, nothing really censorable in the article but 1 thing that journalists keep doing which is either sloppy or deceptive is this constant reference to C.Horner as Bernies chosen successor long after Bernie himself has denied it, stating that in answering a question about who could take over from him he pointed at Christian, who was walking past, and said “what about him, he could”. Time to drop that succession “theory”.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 9:24
The modern web journalist seems to make a habit of referencing and calling-back older articles all the time. No doubt it’s done to pad articles because they’re paid by word count or something…
Sumedh
16th December 2013, 2:44
Regarding the COTD, well, a Ferrari driver came second. And it is well known that Ferrari care about the drivers’ championship, not constructors. Look at the outpouring of emotion after Michael won the 2000 drivers title versus the celebrations of the 1999 constructors title. Also, look at Ferrari’s no.1-no.2 policy in their drivers.
Now, you could make an argument saying “they are a team, they should worry about the constructors and let drivers worry about the drivers’ title”. Obviously, Ferrari think differently. Hence, their different status compared to other teams in the sport as well.
Fsoud (@udm7)
16th December 2013, 7:28
Or like in the past 3 years, they’ve had no chnace in constructors and ALonso (with a bit of help from Massa) has managed to stay in the title hunt for so long.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 9:47
That’s rubbish. Given that Ferrari are always banging on about ‘the team’ (and that’s also where the money is), I’m pretty sure the constructors is where their real desire is.
Claiming they’re focussing on the WDC rather than WCC is just massaging driver egos. Also, one tends to begat the other.
GongTong (@gongtong)
16th December 2013, 12:09
@optimaximal The WCC is not necessarily “where the money is”. It’s a lot more complex than that.
I think people get too caught up on the prize of TV revenue and fail to recognise that, even though no direct payment is awarded, a WDC can be very valuable.
Robbie
16th December 2013, 13:52
Don’t forget MS’s WDC in 2000 ended a 21 year drought on the team, so of course the celebrations were huge.
I don’t see how one could argue Ferrari are more concerned about the Constructors title when they admit being a one rooster team. Of course 2014 will be different thank goodness and maybe they have finally figured out that if you squelch one half of the garage it can harm the WCC chances. And as has been pointed out, almost always the WDC winner needed the WCC winning car. And I think having a second rooster on the team should result in 2 great drivers pushing each other in a healthy way and advancing the car so that both of them can displace the competition up at the sharp end of the grid rather than having one languishing in the background leaving the other fending for himself without the support of having the other take points from some key players.
anon
16th December 2013, 19:36
I wouldn’t say that having a tiered driver ranking was necessarily the only indication of the importance that a team places on each championship – Lotus have traditionally run with a ranking system even in years when they weren’t competing for either title, since that is how the team has always been set up.
Now, Ferrari probably do place a reasonably heavy emphasis on the WDC, but at the same time the WCC is similarly important to them too. Asides from the fact that the financial rewards for winning the WCC outweighs winning the WDC, there is a certain element of prestige for Ferrari too – see their continued irritation at being beaten by what di Montezemolo dismisses as a “soft drinks maker” and the fact that it does seem to have hurt their pride to have lost out to Mercedes this season. They are both valuable to the team, just in different ways – and you can bet that Ferrari will be keen to take both titles sooner rather than later.
David not Coulthard (@)
16th December 2013, 2:49
What if Massa gets told that he isn’t racing Fernando (and a messege saying,”Fernando is faster than you – and I’m being literal”.
mantresx (@mantresx)
16th December 2013, 2:55
mmm I wonder why Brawn forgot to mention 1998, which also had a big change in the regulations…
GeeMac (@geemac)
16th December 2013, 4:33
That was probably on of the “ones in between that don’t come to mind”.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 9:54
Because Ferrari were comprehensively trounced by McLaren that year?
dragoll (@dragoll)
16th December 2013, 5:01
Lets take a look at the facts:
– Alonso driving for Ferrari in 2014
– Ferrari finishing in the top 6 regularly in 2013, and for every season back to 1996 for that matter.
– Massa driving for Williams in 2014
– Williams being consistently outside the top 10 in 2013, and for many seasons
– Alonso finishing ahead in championship points of Massa every single year that they were teammates
– Massa not known for being a good defensive driver
– DRS makes it exceptionally difficult to hold anyone at bay
So Massa, if I were you mate, I’d be worried less about Alonso passing you and more worried about how to either drag Williams back into the top 10, or better yet, brown nose your way back into a top team… Just remember, on your CV, your greatest selling point is that you’re the perfect #2 driver.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 9:54
@dragoll Maybe stop taking his statement literally and more with the jest and snark with which he delivered it?
Raaj (@raaj85)
16th December 2013, 5:31
Lol @ Massa saying he won’t let Alonso through… good luck with that- i don’t think u can ignore the blue flags ;)
karter22 (@karter22)
16th December 2013, 6:10
‘Thanks also to you Fer, we will meet again on track and this time I will try not to let you through.’”
Try being the operative word in the sentence! You may try all you want Felipe… I doubt you´ll be anywere near the sharp end, you´ll be too busy with STR, SAUBER and Marussia!
Steven Smith (@ragwort)
16th December 2013, 7:06
He’ll have no choice. It’ll be a drive through penalty if he ignores the blue flags.
Timothy Katz (@timothykatz)
16th December 2013, 7:58
Oo-err! Comment of the day.
I probably shouldn’t have written that; unnecessarily bitchy. So I’m sorry if it upset anyone.
GeeMac (@geemac)
16th December 2013, 8:36
T’was a fair comment I’d say.
Deb Luhi (@debeluhi)
17th December 2013, 3:06
You shouldn’t have done this. The comment was very funny. Leave the political correctness to the politicians.
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
16th December 2013, 9:00
If enough people make the same comment about blue flags, does it become Comment of the Day?
I think Massa’s just relieved he won’t have to wear the new Ferrari race suits in Bertolini’s photo.
BasCB (@bascb)
16th December 2013, 9:42
Might be just me (I did see it mentioned before though), but giving him just the engine is a bit meh. Why couldn’t Ferrari give Massa the whole car he ran in Interlagos 2008? THat would have been a nice gesture. This is awkward.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 10:02
The conspiracy theorists might say it’s because they’re worried about Williams/Mercedes having access to Ferrari technology.
Optimaximal (@optimaximal)
16th December 2013, 9:58
Are people that in love with Alonso that they are taking Massa’s words as a genuine threat or intent, and not a snarky quip at the team for allowing that situation in 2010 to happen?
BasCB (@bascb)
16th December 2013, 9:59
Interesting piece in Swiss Blick (in German) about the current state at Sauber. Seems its still quite tight and unclear where the money is going to come from for the next seasons (and it also hints that far less Mexican money was actually received than hoped – or maybe even than promised/agreed?)
DaveF1 (@davef1)
16th December 2013, 10:52
While Felipe is a nice guy I fully expect Bottas to beat him just like Alonso has been doing the past 4 years. I would have preferred he called it quits after Brazil rather than try and eek out a few more seasons at Williams as we all now how well that went for Rubens.
James (@jaymz)
16th December 2013, 12:12
Lol at how many people made a blue flag joke. Wasn’t funny the first time.
Maybe read through the comments before posting a rubbish joke.
mixwell (@mixwell)
16th December 2013, 12:39
well he might have to. when he sees the blue flags being waved for his Sauber
Sam (@)
16th December 2013, 15:02
@TimothyKatz
Have you received your angry letter from him already?
Timothy Katz (@timothykatz)
16th December 2013, 15:29
@ardenflo Ha! No, not yet. Maybe there will be a little dig in the next Horse Whisperer’s message; I’d love to be so famous!
zoom (@zoomracing)
16th December 2013, 15:58
Massa should be more worrid about Bottas more than anything.
Robbie
16th December 2013, 23:23
Seems like I’m practically alone with what I’m about to say, but I’m not ready to discount FM’s extensive experience in F1, so I’m not as convinced as some that he will have a hard time against Bottas. Sure Bottas has some continuity with the team, but I think FM could be looking at this as a fresh start, with fresh new cars and regs, and he’ll be an equal at Williams. I think and hope he will surprise his naysayers with this new opportunity.