06 March 2023 , 14:00
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Bernie Ecclestone regrets not stripping Lewis Hamilton of the 2008 Formula 1 title and handing it to the "cheated" Felipe Massa.
The 92-year-old was in charge of the sport at the time as Hamilton famously won his maiden title on the last lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix. For a few seconds Massa believed he was champion, but Timo Glock was struggling with his tyres and the Brit passed in the final few corners to secure enough points to take glory.
But Ecclestone feels another incident earlier in the season should have been dealt with differently. He referred to the Singapore Grand Prix – the site of the 'Crashgate' scandal which later engulfed F1.
Nelson Piquet Jr later said he had been told by his Renault team to crash on purpose to give team-mate Fernando Alonso an advantage. This all came out in 2009, but Ecclestone admitted that he and then-FIA chief Max Mosley found out about earlier and should have acted.
He told F1 Insider : "Back then, there was a rule that a world championship classification after the FIA awards ceremony at the end of the year was untouchable. So Hamilton was presented with the world championship and everything was fine.
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"But, according to the statutes, we should have cancelled the race in Singapore under these conditions. That means it would never have happened for the world championship standings. Then Felipe Massa would have become world champion and not Lewis Hamilton."
Hamilton beat Massa to the 2008 title in Brazil (AFP/Getty Images)Hamilton had finished third in Singapore while Massa was unable to score points and crossed the line 13th after a mistake during a pit stop. Taking the Marina Bay result out of the championship equation would have seen Massa take the title even despite what later happened in Brazil.
Ecclestone added: "I still feel sorry for Massa today. He won the final at his home race in Sao Paulo and did everything right. He was cheated out of the title he deserved while Hamilton had all the luck in the world and won his first championship.
"Today I would have arranged things differently. Michael Schumacher is still the sole record world champion, for me. Even if the statistics say otherwise."