Lewis Hamilton could lose 2008 F1 title as Felipe Massa considers suing FIA

04 April 2023 , 14:46

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Lewis Hamilton beat Felipe Massa to the 2008 F1 title (Image: Getty Images)

Felipe Massa plans to assess all his legal options in a bid to change the outcome of the 2008 Formula 1 title race.

The Brazilian thought, for a few seconds after finishing the Brazilian Grand Prix, that he had just become world champion in front of his home crowd. But Lewis Hamilton had other ideas, overtaking the slow-moving Timo Glock on the final lap to score just enough points to move back above his rival.

Massa took that extremely painful defeat with great dignity and sportsmanship at the time. However, 15 years on, the 41-year-old is looking to change the history books after recent comments made by former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, regarding the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

That race went down in infamy when Nelson Piquet Jr later alleged that he had been told by Renault to deliberately crash his car, to the benefit of his team-mate Fernando Alonso. The resulting safety car led to Massa only managing to finish 13th after a botched pit stop, while Hamilton crossed the line third.

Removing the result of that Singapore race from the 2008 championship would change the outcome of the title race, with Massa victorious. And Ecclestone recently told F1 Insider that he regretted not doing so at the time, feeling that the Brazilian had been "cheated" out of the championship.

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FIA statutes dictate that the classification of an F1 season cannot be changed as soon as the awards ceremony at the end of the year is complete. As 'Crashgate' only became public knowledge during the following season, the governing body said it was impossible to cancel the result of the previous year's Singapore GP.

Bernie Ecclestone recently admitted he knew about Crashgate in 2008 (Getty Images)

But as Ecclestone admitted that he and then-FIA president Max Mosley were aware of the deliberate crash allegations in 2008, but did not act, Massa thinks there might be grounds to look into the situation again. He plans to assess his legal options in preparation for a possible challenge.

"There is a rule that says that when a championship is decided, from the moment the driver receives the champion's trophy, things can no longer be changed, even if it has been proven a theft," he told Motorsport.com.

"At the time, Ferrari's lawyers told me about this rule. We went to other lawyers and the answer was that nothing could be done. So I logically believed in this situation. But after 15 years, we hear that the [former] owner of the category says that he found out in 2008, together with the president of the FIA, and they did nothing, to not tarnish the name of F1.

Felipe Massa is now considering his legal options (AFP/Getty Images)

"This is very sad, to know the result of this race was supposed to be cancelled and I would have a title. In the end, I was the one who lost the most with this result. So, we are going after it to understand all this.

"There are rules, and there are many things that, depending on the country, you cannot go back after 15 years to resolve a situation. But I intend to study the situation; study what the laws say, and the rules. We have to have an idea of what is possible to do."

Massa's motivations, he says, are not financial, but to earn his place among former F1 champions which he feels was taken from him unfairly. He added: "I would never go after it thinking financially. I would go after it thinking about justice.

"I think if you've been punished for something that wasn't your fault, and it's the product of a robbery, a stolen race, justice has to be served. In fact, the right situation is to cancel the result of that race. It is the only justice that can be done in a case like this."

Daniel Moxon