17 January 2023 , 21:29
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Felipe Massa has accused his former team-mate Fernando Alonso of "splitting Ferrari in the middle" during their time racing together for the Scuderia.
The Brazilian had three team-mates during his time as a Ferrari driver, and they were all pretty special. A year racing alongside Michael Schumacher was followed by a stint with Kimi Raikkonen, before Alonso was later brought in to replace the Finn.
Massa spent four years racing alongside the double world champion before leaving at the end of the 2013 campaign to join Williams. Considering his recent comments about Alonso, endured might be a more accurate word than spent.
Asked if Alonso was his most "difficult" team-mate in F1, he told Polish news outlet Swiatwyscigow: "Yeah, yeah, for sure. He was an amazing driver, there's nothing more you can say there, but it was quite difficult to work together inside the team. Actually, the team was splitting in the middle.
"And in the end, it was not good for the result of the team. And also, for me, I didn't feel strong enough to work, to make the team listen to me. That was quite hard. But anyway, it was also some learning around as well."
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In terms of results, Massa was overshadowed by Alonso during their time racing together. The Spaniard scored more points in all four seasons, finishing as runner-up in the championship on three occasions.
Massa got along much better with Michael Schumacher (Getty Images)He was also bested by Schumacher during their one and only season together in 2006, but that, Massa says, was a different experience entirely. "It was a great experience," he declared.
"It was a great time to be able to be team-mates with Michael Schumacher. I learned a lot from him. He was an amazing driver. The way he was working... We were very close as well. In the end I was lucky to be part of that experience."
Massa is living back in Brazil now, racing stock cars and happy with the way his racing career has gone. He would like to return to Europe to take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but says he does not want to commit to the full World Endurance Championship because he has "other things to do".