For once, I agree with James Allen. Ferrari needs to start wondering whether Felipe Massa has the ability to win an F1 world championship, and they need to have a think about getting someone like Kovalainen or Kubica on the phone.
Excellent James, a fine comment, well made. Makes a change from all those excruciating cliches.
We mustn’t forget that Massa was placed at Ferrari by the son of then team principle, Jean Todt. Nicholas Todt has managed the Ferrari journeyman for a few years now, and it was a cosy placement indeed from Jean, putting his son’s driver into a big-paying seat with the world’s best-known F1 team, first as a tester, then as a racer to replace Rubens Barrichello next to Michael Schumacher.
Don’t forget, a driver’s manager pockets a goodly percentage of his charge’s income. Why not direct that income stream toward your own son?
Todt wouldn’t have given him the drive just for that reason, of course. Massa is by no means bad. On occasion, Massa has actually been good, fast, when things suit him, when things go his way and the surface is dry and consistent and he likes the track.
But when things get tough, when it gets knife-edge close, as it will tend to in a championship battle, Massa – unlike Raikkonen – isn’t up to it.
He just isn’t consistent enough, doesn’t have the mental strength or resilience to take on the world’s best, and I’m starting to get angry about his presence at the Scuderia.
Even when Massa seems on top of things, I can’t help wondering when his next disaster will strike, when his brain will short circuit. It is a waste of a tremendous F1 seat and it’s time for a change.
So, let’s assume Ferrari is now considering a replacement for Massa. Who would be the strongest partner for Kimi, the reigning World Champion (who had an off day in Germany, but will bounce back like the champion he is)?
Who would you like to see in that second Ferrari seat next year? Assume that Ferrari could buy any driver out of his contract other than Hamilton – no, they can’t have Lewis. Not yet. But anyone else…
Who would you like to see in there?
What Ferrari really needs is consistency, and Kubica has it in spades. If he were in a Ferrari, he would be seriously hassling Lewis Hamilton. He’s also a decent wet weather driver as well.
Kubica – period
button
button is one of the most underated drivers with the most extreme unlucky streak of any1 i know .. if u see he always clocks a good fastest time and i just believe in him thats all .. cant explain it
Barichello. He’s great in the wet and it would be nice seeing him back at the scuderia…if he wouold agree
Ferrari needs a First and a Second drivers.
So… they need Alonso as first pilot.
He is the only one better than Massa or Kimi that is available.
And, as similar as Massa in the Ferrari, Kovalainen is a bad use of the seat in the Mclaren. Kubica would be a great pilot to them.
Alonso and Kubica, they get along together really well.
massa doesnt need replacing hes hade a couple of bad races and is getting some stick, he surly second best driver in the feild, hamilton got the same bad things said about him when he got all them penaltys and bad races,massa for champion this year!!! go massa!!
Kubica would be a great choice!
Kubica in a Ferrari would make a number of people in Surrey very, very concerned, and with good reason. Fast car, metronomic driver. Now where have we seen a pair like that ‘cobbled’ together before….
Definitely Alonso, he’d be the best available no doubt
Button being underrated?! He barely manages to finish a race!
And with his teammate hassling the front runners at Silverstone, it can’t be just the car that’s letting him down.
Thank god we now have Hamilton and the spot light has shifted from the perpetually disappointing Jenson as Britain’s Number 1
To me Kubica isn’t a Ferrari driver. For some reason when I think of Ferrari drivers, Kubica just doesn’t fit. Yes he’s a bloody great driver (I’m a fan), but in a Ferrari i just don’t think its the right combination. Just the vibe.
Alfonso would fit. Kova would fit. Any likelihood of Bruno Senna stepping straight in? I’d almost even be tempted to say Sutil. I’d be chasing Alfonso if I were Ferrari though.
Just as long as they don’t touch Nico, I’d sell my soul to see him win races in a Williams.
What a load of cobblers. I am no Massa fan, but the guy has a couple of bad races and suddenly he is no good? Yes he can be erratic but I remember some very god wet drives from him. Also, in the same car, he finishes 3rd to Kimi’s 6th. Kimi’s run of results has been head scratchingly poor over the last 4-5 races, does this mean he has no longer got it. Posts like thisshow how reactive and ill informed some motoring “journalists” are. And agreeing with anything james Allen says? How can you live with yourself?
Massa is a good driver but i dont think he deserves a Ferrari seat. Everyone is going on about Kubica but with Kimi’s weakness being car development I say they should go for an experienced driver who will help develop the car…..Mark Webber anyone?
Massa deserves the spot more than most. he’s a great driver and should not be taking all this for 1 bad race and one unfortunate race. its easy to see the ferrari’s struggled with setup at germany this year. he will bounce back im sure. hes got the second spot at the moment and we are only just past half way through the season.
alonso!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!
There’s always talk about next generation drivers like rosberg, kubica[pretty much anyone under 25-30.] Nelson JR fits the next gen theory and as pointed out earlier in another post, Alonso’s having de ja vu. Junior got a podium after starting in 17th. Massa has RARELY had to get from back to front like Piquet. I think Ferrari should wait a while like red bull did with vettel. let piquet proves his worth in a midcard team then move him up when dues are paid.
With the possibility of Kimi leaving F1 in the near future, Ferrari really need a replacement for both him and Massa who can’t defend or overtake to save his life… at Silverstone he couldn’t even keep it on the track and is making Ferrari look stupid. I think Button and Alonso would be good choices.
Not that I mind Ferrari losing; whenever they get beaten it’s like good has overcome evil.
Fair comment by James Allen but made about the wrong person. Ferrari don’t need to replace Felipe, they should replace Kimi. They need to establish a team leader to focus on as when they had Schumacher. Felipe won’t win a world championship but he would be a good number two driver. Kimi was lucky last year although he scored the most points and therefore deserved to be champion. He’s already mooted the possibility of retiring and his motivation seems to be at an all-time low. The replacement would have to be Alonso or Hamilton although Fernando seems to have lost his head lately.
Bruno Senna
Button definately. Think about it for a bit. If Button was in a Ferrari, britain would own formula 1. Jenson Button has a lot of talent, the only problem is is that he only knows how to pass quick drivers, watch videos of him in 2004 with BAR Honda, in 2007 and 2008, all he has to do is pass slower drivers in a slower car, which he doesn’t know how to do as he has had no experience. Ferrari should at least give him a trial in one of the tests coming up. Kovelinen won’t last too long at Maclaren either.
“Fast, when things suit him, when things go his way and the surface is dry and consistent and he likes the track.”
That’s too many requirements to expect a championship from him any time soon.
Kubica is really showing the world what he can do, and actually fellow BMW-man Heidfeld really pulled a blinder in Silverstone. There are just better drivers out there that do the stuff more often than Massa. Button is another good’un, but needs a better car. I’m sure Kimi wouldn’t mind, and then Jensen’s company car would go from being a Civic Type-R to being a 612 or maybe a Maser Quattroporte!!
I don’t quite understand the point here. Sure, Massa hasn’t gotten along with the rain recently, and sure he lacks racecraft. Yet at the same time he has this brilliant ability to race at the front, and the resilience to recover from difficult weekends immediately.
Instead of dwelling on his weaknesses, if we look at Massa as a complete package, he’s not bad at all. Not the best, raise your hands Alonso, Hamilton and Raikkonen, but which driver beyond these do you think is decisively better? Button? Webber? Kubica? None of these have dominated their teammates enough in the past to suggest they are up there with the top 3. Even Rosberg is tied with his rookie teammate right now. And Vettel has been spoken for. He may have his faults, but Massa deserves his seat.
And please, what was that about Kovalainen in the first paragraph? Kovalainen? Really?
Jarno trulli anyone????
People are saying that Massa has only had a few bad races. but look back to the first two races of the season where he couldn’t keep it on the track either. Ferrari are a top team and they need two top drivers. Massa doesn’t quite fit that bill. he makes too many mistakes.
Kubica is the obvious choice but i don’t think the Ferrari would suit him. Kovalainen suffers from his weakness of not being able to pull off race results to match his qualifying prowess. Button would struggle with the Ferrari also. plus he seems to not want to leave Honda no matter how bad they are.
I’d have to go with Kubica and then hope that he can pull it off. rather than fall by the wayside
MICHAEL SCHUMACHER OF COURSE..?
Alonso is a fantastic driver, and if he were solo he would be the best choice. However he has to be part of a team, and you just can’t have two lead drivers with Alonso and Raikkonen. Then ferrari would be in the same mess as mclaren was last season. For that reason, the next best driver, and one who can work as a team, is Kubica.
The big names are great but what about the potential of the much younger drivers? Anyone think about Sebastian Vettel? He is rather consistent even when his car does not perform up to standards.
If the Scuderia wants some fresh blood in the team. Romain Grosjean would be their best bet. He’s young and talented and could be molded into what he will surely be, a champion. His feature race in Germany this weekend was brilliant when rain started to fall. He was running faster times in the wet with slicks than Senna was with wet weather tires.
i doubt anyone from GP2 would get into a ferrari seat. They all got their ass kicked by LH and NPJ, LH was in a different league, NPJ is not quick, yet he beat them.
Ali, looking at your post on who has dominated who in the car, check out Button’s history- 2004, he beat his team mate by 51 points, 2005. he beat his team mate by 36 points, Honda weren’t their best that season. 2006 was a better year, he had Barrichello as his team mate, and wooped him by 26 points, and won a race. 2007 was probably an eventful year, the dreaded RA107 was let loose, and what a disaster, Nick Fry said after the opening race he expected none of his drivers to score more than 2 points or so, even still, Button gained 6 points, which is 6 more than his team mate, and even better, he dragged the RA107 from 10th on the grid to 5th at the finish, even lapping RB. Button is the right man for the job, even maclaren were discussing him to partner Lewis, unfortunately, button had 1 year left at Honda, and HK was being let go by Renault.
by 10th to 5th, i mean in the Chinese GP.
Robert Kubica
i would say kubica.. and kimi kimi as no. 1 driver and kub no. 2
It’s good to read all these comments, even the ones who don’t agree. Except one, the one from Ali, the one that says ‘instead of dwelling on his weaknesses, if we look at Massa as a complete package, he’s not bad at all, there aren’t any better drivers than him other than the top three.’
Argh. No. Imagine time stood still for a few minutes and Massa was standing in the pit lane and the rest of the drivers could shuffle past him and admire his nice red Ferrari racing suit – and kick him if they thought they could make a good case for being better than him, more deserving of that suit.
He’d get a few kicks in the shins, wouldn’t he? Shall we start at the back of the grid? Fisichella, the old warrior and an Italian, fast and consistent and could play an equally good role as a number two – give that guy a shot in a Ferrari and watch him go. Sutil, unproven but shows flashes of brilliance, there’s nothing to say he wouldn’t be better than Massa.
Shall we go on? Yeah, why not? Vettel, absolutely a better driver than Massa, a proper mercurial star. Bourdais – won more in his career, admittedly in other formulae, but a deeply smart and quick driver who, given time to bed in, would be better than Massa. Kick.
A few more? Rosberg, obviously better. Webber, faster in qualifying, more consistent in races, never truly had the car to show his form. Kick. Coulthard! Who wouldn’t bet on David bringing in more points than Massa given a year in a Ferrari? Trulli, absolutely quicker in qualifying and races harder and faster, too. And Italian. We’d see another Jean Alesi there, I reckon. And Glock, he’s good. Still largely unproven, but give him a great car and a great team and I think he’d be better than Massa.
Button? Nothing more need be said there. Button would give Kimi a run. Barrichello? Yep, he’d be a better compliment to Raikkonen and Rubens would have WON in the wet at Silverstone, not spun off five times.
Hamilton, yes, of course. Kovalainen? Yes. Of course, again. He’s a great racer and is only a smidge off Lewis in his first year in a new team. Alonso? That’s a given. Piquet? I’d say he’s borderline given his struggles, but I still think he’s a better prospect than Massa.
Heidfeld? Absolutely a better driver than Massa – would bring the car home and would rarely make mistakes. And quick Nick is no slouch in qualifying, either, despite being blown away by another guy who is demonstrably better than Massa, Kubica.
Who’s left? Er. Um. Erm. Aaah. Oh, yeah. Nakajima. No, he doesn’t have even the slightest chance of being better than Massa. That guy is a pay-driver imposter who shouldn’t be in F1. I am more outraged by him than I am by Felipe. And that’s saying something. Seeing that Nakajima character in a great Williams almost brings me to tears. Come on Frank, give Massa a run!
I really can’t see Ferrari, or anyone apart from Flavio hiring Alonso. He may be a good driver, but I doubt they’ve forgotten that last year he knowingly used stolen Ferrari data to his advantage, and then had the gall to threaten Ron Dennis that he’d report the team to the FIA unless he was given number one status – not the kind of guy you want wearing your colours.
I think Massa and Hamiton are the same. When Lewis gets some grief from the public and media, he shuts them up with a stunning victory, but when everyone thinks he’s untouchable, he either suffers car trouble or cocks up. Massa is the same – whenever he’s talked down, he gives Hamilton some serious problems. Whenever he’s praised, he spends half a race doing ballerina twirls into the gravel.
The perfect team setup would be Alonso to replace Massa and for Kubica to replace Kovalainen. It’ll respark the Lewis/Alonso rivalry and Kubica will be the skilled teammate that lewis needs to help spur him on. Kovalainen currently isn’t up to the job. Furthermore, I think a Massa/BMW combo would suit him well, and Kovalainen’s skills is more of a Renault level.
As for Raikonnen, it wasn’t his weekend, but he’ll be right up Hamilton’s backside in no time, you’ll see.
Webber, Give him a Good Car and he will win !!
Bill, I went through a similarly cruel scenario in my own head yesterday, and with much the same outcome – except that Massa received one less punch in the back of the head, on account of Fisichella also being a div.
Ferrari should have gotten rid of Massa long time ago, it has always been obvious that he is a good driver and can score good results, but he has never looked like a Champion.
It seemes they are trying to force him to become a champion to replace kimi.
And the best replacement for kimi is Alonso. Thats the kind of driver Ferrari should have, and can have. And the guy is hungry, very hungry..
Ferrari is going to repeat what McLaren did last year, and Hamilton will be the champion.
Well Massa is the best of the LOT the best driver, i dont remember any one else taking the pole away from schumi on his day other than Massa.
He is as aggressive in a car as any one can be.
Being favourate to Michel Schumacker does say a lot about Massa’s ability.
This year the fight will be between kimi and Massa.
Let’s hope a competitive car for Alonso too he is a serious contender too may be in times to come not this year.
I definitly think that Mark Webber has what it takes to be a top notch Ferrari driver. His Red Bull car seems to suffer reliability problems (as seen this weekend). I think he has huge potential in one of the big 2 teams.
Oh and I agree with the poster above saying that Kubica doesn’t fit the Ferrari drivers mould. Theres just something about him… maybe its that he looks good in white?
Kubica, Rosberg, or Alonso (out of the potentially available drivers). Though Alonso is overrated. The two years he won the world championship were two disaster years for both Mclaren and Ferrari in terms of reliability. No car had the reliability of the Renault. Alonso is also killing his career by switching teams every year. There are way too many good drivers out there to think that you are more important than the team or car. Granted he has a crappy car this year, but is he as good as now without traction control? Similar question for Massa…fast driver in great conditions, but in the rain?
Question for Ali…
How has Massa deserved his seat at Ferrari? What did he do prior to racing for Ferrari?
Based on his last two races, Lewis seems to be a cut above those he can be directly compared with. To date he is besting the three other drivers who have cars similar in performance to his own, Massa, Kimi, and Kovalainen. To the three I add Alonso who in 2007 was clearly match for Lewis and Kimi. Button can also be added due to his strong Podiums in 2006. Barrichello too since he is beating Button now and had beaten Alonso when Rubens was in a Ferrari. Kubica and Heidfeld can also join since they are quite close to the top even in a slightly inferior car. Webber is a possible but he has never had a good car. Same with Vettel. There is only one other person who has consistently beaten all of the above and thats Michael Schumacher. Maybe Ferrari needs him back if Lewis continues to dominate.
Button… he’s cruising at the back of the field and seems to be happy with it. I can not call it a “champion’s attitude”. compare that with Robert’s words after his (first ever) win – “we need to work harder”.
does not suit in Ferrari ? he’s racing in Italy since he was 13, has Italian manager, can speak in this language… damn good driver and well prepared for PR work for Ferrari.
Kovalainen or Kubica on the phone?? HAHA KOVALAINEN???? HAHAHA
if i were to recommend someone outside the popular F1 drivers i’d recommend the STIG ! .
It wouldnt be bad to see `kovalainen at Ferrari though .
Bunch of tripe. Button? Coulthard? Piquet Jr? Please.
Massa is a good driver, if it wasn’t for his occasional lapses of concentration he could be fantastic.
If Ferrari were to replace Massa (which I personally don’t agree with at all) they should be looking at the young talent, Vettel should be the front runner.
Kovalainen has shown that he has the pace, and to be honest many of his results this season have been out of his hands. Besides, Kimi & Heikki would probably work well together.
Kubica would also be a decent replacement, but would he be happy playing second fiddle to Räikkönen?
Alonso needs Ferrari, Ferrari Needs Alonso
KOVALAINEN?!?!?!?! You’re joking right? please… Kovalainen it’s the biggest mistake McLaren EVER made…
still, Massa is doing a good job, not perfectlyt consistent, but good, the season ain’t over yet…. let’s wait and see…
omg has everyone gone mad…lets examine the evidence for 2008 at ferrari.
felipe has outqualified kimi 6 times so far this year,
kimi only outqualified felipe 3 times so far.
felipe has 3 race wins for 2008 to kimis 2 race wins
felipe has 54 drivers championship points so far
to kimis 51….hhmmmm looks like 1 of the ferrari drivers isnt living up to his hype…
I say replace kimi…
That should get the massa haters whipped up….
I’m no Ferrari fan but it seems to me Massa is having a better (or equal) season to Reikenan, isn’t he? I said Ferrari should of rang Kubica before the season started on the basis Lewis has been quoted as saying Kubica is the one driver he fears for the future. If I was Ferrari boss and caught wind of Lewis saying that Kubica would of been on-board, instantly (and how right I was too). Still, Kubica is in my fantasy F1 at work and earning me plenty of consistent points, so I’m happy! Replace Kubica with Piquet too, there, another Barry BURBs tip
yes Barry i cant understand myself how people are ganging up on massa when he is clearly out performing the ferrari big signing kimi!!!
And well im on, since when has james allen known what he is talking about….
bring back schumacher i say….
Trulli
Why are people saying that massa would be excellent IF this and if that, and that he is better than kimi?
And people don’t like alonso.
How many years has massa been in ferrari? How many times did he fight for the championchip? None. Never. Even this year, the word is if kimi doesnt get back to where he was few races ago, nothing can stop lewis. why is that?
Let’s concantrate people, you drive for ferrari to be the world champion. Not to be competitive.
in reply to thomas….felipe is good, he is fighting for the championship, and he is the better performing driver (so far) at ferrari this year!!
The problem is (at the moment) the ferrari is not a championship winning car!!
Sebestian Vettel……? think about it people in the german grandprix……in his under performing torro rosso he gave a tough time to a lot of goood drivers…..Alonso, one the best, suffered at his hands….I know it is an outside pick, but Scuderia does not have the policy of two championship material racers. But then Massa is not half bad he is a racer and has the ability to over take unlike the iceman….Although Hamiltion made him look like a amateur on the german grand prix,but atleast he was there to compete unlike his team mate,and the ferrari was no way near to the pace of Mclarins….so please get a grip Bill ….he is not a bad driver…..
To Bill,
In my opinion your evaluation of Massa is wrong. Massa and Barrichello can be accurately compared due to their stints with Michael Schumacher. A close comparison of relative performance will show that there is not much to choose between the two of them. Since Barrichello is now Button’s team mate, it can be concluded that Massa is also competitive with Button since Button and Barrichello are closely matched in Honda.
Button? No. It just wouldn’t happen, although I’d love to see him at Mclaren with lewis, because contray to what Ron Dennis might think, Kovalinen has been appauling this year. In the fezza seat? Alonso. but how would him and Kimi get on?
Oh and Barichello..? Hes flippin ancient. No way.
F1 has 4 levels of drivers
The Best: Alonso, Hamiliton, Raikkonen (when he could be bothered)
Up And Coming: Vettel, Kubica, Rosberg,
No 2’s Massa, Webber, Kovy, DC, Button, Heidfeld,
Past it, had their chance, should retire: Fisi, barrichelo ,Trulli
as for Sutil, Piquet, Nakijima & Bourdais the jurys still out
Hello Boo
think youve made a mistake in your list!!!
DC is surely past it not no2….
Sorry Bill, but I think that this post about Massa was very “unhappy”. You just went totally against what really happened on the German GP… Kimi didn’t race, it seemed he was taking a “walk on the park”… Massa tried to resist, but McLaren was a much better car…
“But when things get tough, when it gets knife-edge close, as it will tend to in a championship battle, Massa – unlike Raikkonen – isn’t up to it.”
Well, we saw last year that Hamilton wasn’t “up to it” and this year we’re seeing that Kimi STILL isn’t “up to it” and Massa is doing a better job on ferrari this year so far… Kimi only won last year season because Hamilton was still imature e made some mistakes that took it away from him, even on the last race, when he only nedded a 4th place… and then Felipe, who was beeing faster (and much faster) than Kimi on Brazil, gave him the championship on a “strategically” pit stop by ferrari, which we all knew what was going to happen…
To Capri Dave:
Ferrari have, and always will have, championship-winning cars. The problem is that the drivers aren’t championship-winning drivers. Kimi is a consistently good performer but doesn’t always come first, and Massa seems to still be having teething problems with his lack of traction control, spinning out here and there.
However, Kimi won last year and has proven to be a serious competitor this year too. If I were running Ferrari, i’d have Heidfeld on the phone. Why? because whilst Kubica is better skilled, Heidfeld is flawless and has proven to give most drivers a good run for their money. Kubica has an ‘ambition over adhesion’ issue when he’s under pressure and is further back down the grid, whereas Heidfeld has quick reactions and cunning that goes up to and beyond the levels of the main competitors this year. I wouldn’t put him as Ferrari’s #1 driver, but he’ll do far better as their #2 driver than Massa ever will, and I can’t imagine Hamilton being able to overtake him anywhere near as easily as he’s able to overtake Massa.
The alternative is to put Nakajima and Boudais in the two Ferraris. This will determine whether driving a Ferrari automatically makes you a winning favourite, or if the drivers truly have to earn that priveledge through examples of unrivalled skill. And if the latter is the case, then i’ll annoy the Massa fans by saying that putting Massa in a Ferrari is as big an issue as when Lewis waltzed into a McLaren, or Williams being Nakajima’s debut season team. None of the three earned those rights, but they got those opportunities nonetheless.
Response to Boo about the best drivers…
I dont rate Alonso that highly, especially without traction control. like i said before, the two years he won the championship is when mclaren and ferrari were having dismal years in terms of reliability. alonso is a good driver, but not of the calibre of hamilton or raikkonen.
Response to Ash’s last paragraph:
any driver that thinks they are more important or better than the car/team is out of their mind (like alonso)
also, what did massa do before he came to ferrari or formula 1? (i admit that i dont quite know)
but dont forget hamilton won gp2. and his driving from the beginning showed he clearly deserved/deserves the seat at mclaren. plus hes been with mclaren for most of his racing career, so why the hell would they not put him in a mclaren?
I reckon Ferrari are on the phone to Alonso pretty soon, but he will want the same sort of deal that Schuey had, (I’m guaranteed number one) and I can’t see Kimi standing for that. So it could even be that Kimi goes and Felipe has to play second fiddle to Alonso. Either way Alonso will be in a Ferrari within two years I reckon. If they are sensible enough to go for Kubicza and not Alonso I’ll be really impressed.
And leave James Allen alone, christ he’s a lot better than what we had with Murray which was so embarrasing.
To Ash
you cannot be serious man!!
“Ferrari have, and always will have championship winning cars”
you obviously dont remember the big drought at maranello, after Jody Sheckter won Ferrari’s last drivers championship in 1979.
Ferrari had to wait 20yrs to win another constructors championship (1999) and 21yrs to win the drivers championship (2000).
And that was only after signing the super team Schumacher, Todt, Brawn, and Byrne in 1996.
Anyone can see that the Ferrari has been no match for the Mclaren these past couple of races…
its nothing to do with the drivers, the Ferrari is simply struggling in the chassis department fact!!
The only question on mine and everyone elses lips
is (And i say this as a Ferrari fan) can they pull themselves out of this rut they seem to have fallen into?
Or are they missing the input of the Super Team?
in Answer to eric
“also, what did massa do before he came to ferrari or formula 1″?
After driving in international karting events Massa
moved up to Formula chevrolet where he came 5th in his 1st year, The following year he lifted the title.
in 2000 Massa won the Italian formula Renault series
and the European Formula Renault series.
This performance gave Massa the choice of either Formula 3 or Formula 3000,
Felipe chose Formula 3000 where he won 6 of the 8 races in the 1st year and lifted the title.
This performance was enough for Peter Sauber to offer Felipe a Test session in the Sauber formula 1 team, where he was signed up.
The rest as they say is History…
haha massa has a fairly decent history then. but i think it also helped that his manager was jean todts son. i just think there are drivers out there that would be better options for ferrari.
on alonso and wanting the same sort of deal schumacher had (guaranteed number one driver)…i say just drive the damn car. with so many good drivers out there, he needs to approach force india, or call up super aguri to get a deal like that.
Robert Kubica, he is a team player and would not mind being in the #2 seat if that is Ferrari’s intention. Dont get me wrong, he would be awesome as a premiere pilot for Ferrari, but if you listen to the guy, you KNOW and he himself has made it expressly clear that he is a TEAM driver first and foremost. For the TEAM. and constructor’s championship are as important if not MORE important than the driver’s championship.
Kubica and the current world champ will once solidify Ferrari as the league’s premiere stable. Period.
Mark Webber
Jarno Trulli. Give him a car with excellent race pace and say goodbye to the Trulli train phenomoenon. Oh and who wants to bet against him taking pole position everytime?
Jarno Trulli. Give him a car with excellent race pace and say goodbye to the Trulli train phenomenon. Oh and who wants to bet against him taking pole position everytime?
Alonso is crap talk from spanish media! I doubt how it would work with Kimi, after all, Hamilton did win Alonso, thne he turned “evil” Kimi would also have change to win Alonso, would Alonso become a diva again?
Trulli? nope, age is slowing him down. Button? its same as replacing Massa with other Massa! Both are fast (maybe MAYBE massa is little more faster), and bit too easy to overtake, their way to fight back for pressure coming behind isnt the best possible…
Potential ones: Kubica – He even did lost weight to do better, and i strongly belive that he fights for title, just not at BMW.
Vettel, fast, but not so experienced. He is kind of in oven, to be cooked ready, so someone with big mouth can eat him… (big mouth is BMW, Maclaren or Ferrari)
Last option is Rosberg, bit like Vettel, but Rosberg is coming out of the oven
Finally someone has brought it up!!!! I’ve said it over and over again that Massa sucks. He is a waste of a F1 racing seat. For the love of God please replace this no-talent driver. As far his replacement is concerned Alonso or Kubica will do more than nicely.
JUST KICK MASSA OUT OF FERRARI
Capri Dave
DC is pretty much past it but at least he has had the good sense to quit while he’s ahead, slightly, unlike Fisi, Trulli, Villenuve
Massa is even worst than Barrichello… Slippers!!!
Ferrari would need to look for a newbie, fresh talent to start as a 2nd driver… along with a strong and experienced first drive… Kimi is still a good one.
Alonso would be the best.. but.. he’s too Spanish to work with Italians…
Vettel come on this boy has got more talent than Hamilton give him a decent car and he will do very well
I beleive the best choice would have to be Kubica. He is consistantly up there at the top and even shared the lead of the championship this year. Never mind better than Massa, it could be argued that he’s better than everyone! Given a top car i’m sure he would produce at least one championship.
I can see the case put forward for Alonso but he’s just not an attractive prospect.
Button is a joke. I’m sorry if i’ve just upset a few (British) people but he is. One win in well over 100 starts! Thats hardly Ferrari Material honestly.
As far as young talen is concerned I like Vettel but then again im basing that on his Race of Champions performance.
Kubica could play second fiddle allthough im not sure he would have to and it doesnt matter if he wouldnt suit Ferrari. A good driver fits any team.
That’s it, I am sick of the way people and ITV have a go at Massa. Yes he makes mistakes but so has every other top driver this season, at least he does not drive into stationary cars in the pit lane at low speed.
Regarding Massa’s wet weather abilities, he was leading at Monaco for much of the race and building a sizeable lead.
I have not been a Massa fan but I am coming round to the guy because he has improved so much and the fact that if he sneezes in the wrong direction everyone seems to think “that’s it his days are numbered as an F1 driver”.
Itv’s commentators are also biased, for example, David Coulthard has been crashing into everybody this season and he has been past his sell by date for years. Yet if Massa has the slightest of oversteer moments the commentators condemn Massa and his abilities, yet they rally around Coulthard.
To question Massa’s credentials, James Allen does it all the time, and to ignore another because he is British is wrong. I hope Massa wins the championship.
I hope his holiness, Saint Coulthard retires early because he is rubbish and hope Baby Moses Hamilton is restricted from using the wheel mounted traction control system he used to such good advantage at the German GP.
Personally I believe that Massa, after a really bad time at Sauber needed a chance to get some top experience and I think that he’s got that with Ferrari and shoulld probably move back to the midfield, i think he’s compromising a possible Ferrari domination.
I don’t like it when people are saying Kovaleinen isn’t any good, at least he is scoring consistent points, unlike Massa when he just makes mistakes and ends up at the back.
Button should be given a chance with a front running team for once. He’s stuck with BAR which is showing his loyalty, and is trying hard to move BAR forward which would be good for any team.
It’s a silly thing to say that Massa needs replacing. He’s pretty much been as consistent as the other top drivers, and is second in the championship due to his awesome driving.
lol This topic is starting to crack me up!!
why get rid of Massa when hes clearly beating Raikonnen in the same car…
And whats all this about Ferrari world domination if Massa goes!!
Raikonnen isnt dominating anything lately, infact he cant even beat Massa in an identical car!!!
Alonso at Ferrari ha ha i hope not…
Fernando has a few problems in the upstairs department if you ask me…Everyone is out to get me, I am not given equal treatment, They dont want me in this team, someone is preventing me from winning…sound familiar!!
Hamilton at Ferrari…now your talking!!!!
lets get Lewis in some red overalls and a thoroughbred car….
oh and well im on…dont get me started on james allen, please stop trying to wrongly 2nd guess team strategies, its annoying…
i think that ferrari were a bit wrong in the head to put massa or raikonnen in their cars. neither are replacements for shumacher. massa frankly does not have natural talent but is hard working. ´konnen has natural talent but just doesnt care. there is just no other choice but Alonso, Hamilton, kubica or vettle. all these drivers have the talent and discipline to win a world championship. not just a good car………..
I would hate to see Alonso in Ferrari, it would be to much hipocrecy, that guy hates that team he always expresses badly about it. And Kubica should stick to BMW, the team and those drivers are making huge steps forward they should stay there…
Sabastien Vettel i believe is the best choice for this second seat. He has got tons of raw potential and could be a great lock up for many years to come. I mean look at his qualifying times, top ten in a torro rosso, thats pretty impressive too me.
Nick heidfield
think about this…. who has out-qualified whom this year, who leads the championship, who had the really BAD luck last year and whose more fun to watch racing….MASSA, none else!
Alonso, definitely. He’s got the skill and determination- just needs the equipment and an attitude adjustment?
if hamilton was as good as wha he is made out to be he should have won the championship last year. Fastest car, ahead by a million points and still managed to lose it to a guy who just doesnt seem to care. Now i know it was his first season but i dont care he has been groomed for it since he was like 12 years old so he was ready!!! If Michael Schumacher or Ayrton Senna had been put into that car in their first year no one would have seen which way theyd gone!!! Yes he’s British, yes hes black and yes hes very very fast but that does not mean he is the be all and end all (a note itv would do well to pick up on for their future coverage) As for Massa he’s showing the current world champion they way to go so he should not be replaced, and with Heikki??? Are you kidding??? I was a fan of his last year but this year he’s been appalling! And isnt it funny how when there was team rders at ferrari it was appalling yet Hamilton gets held up for 2 corners by Heikki so Heikki lets him by and its the right thing to do!! And in case anyone forgot Massa was fastest in Monaco in the rain until Ferrari screwed him on his stratergy and he kept it out of the wall unlike a certain british driver.
Alonso is second to none but hes an arse… so i think Kubica, but then i dont think we should start judging Massa just yet, i mean Lewis made few mistakes last year (i know he was a rookie but still) which caused him the title ppl still adore him, so i think we should just wait and see if Massa can bounce back, BUT hes rubbish in the rain though…
ps i think Lewis and Kubica will make good teams, especially if they had Ferraris… but i duno if Lewis will want to drive for the Itialian squad… anways just a thought
To Anonymous
I think i just agreed with pretty much everything you just said lol!!
To phillip sac
I definitely agreed with everything you just said!!
The thing everyone seems to be missing is:
Has Raikkonen even decided if he will be racing next year in F1??
Last i heard he was definitely maybe retiring!!
maybe thats why massa is trouncing him this year,
Raikkonen just cant be bothered!!!
what ferrari need are clearer 1 and 2 drivers. it’s unfair to say that massa is useless and not worthy of his seat on the back of the last couple of results. but he has to go for ferrari to become the clear favourites again, because he is too similar a driver to kimi. both are ferociously fast and dominant on their day. both sometimes fail to turn up on raceday at all. however, massa is not as good as Raikonnen (who remember is world champion, not massa). so ferrari have kimi, a championship contender, and massa, not good enough to be number 1 for ferrari but not quite bad enough to be number 2.
so, step forward the unluckiest man in f1, mark webber.
webber is a fast qualifier and a fast, consistent racer. when Raikonnen doesn’t turn up, mark will pick up the pieces. mabye not as ultimately fast as a massa, but better for the team. i imagine he’ll be like eddie irvine.
and one more thing. piquet got extraordinarily lucky and is rubbish. it is not deja vu like last year for alonso.
lets face it, if Alonso was in massa’s place does anyone doubt he would have won last year and this year? the best cars have to have the best drivers, and ferrari this year just doesnt. Alonso is at the moment the best all-round driver in the world, even if he is a bit of a twat sometimes. but most f1 drivers are anyway!!
few comments:
- in my opinion kubica would never play second fiddle to anyone (and i dont think he should). i dont think any decent driver should have to be considered the number 2 driver. in some circumstances maybe, for example when heikki let hamilton through at hockenheim because hamilton was much faster than anybody else that race. why hold up your teammate when he has a chance to win the race and you dont? mclaren walked away with a few more championship points because of heikkis decision making. but kubica is way too good a driver to be considered number 2 (someone mentioned possibly at ferrari) right off the bat.
- some people keep mentioning massas early-race domination at the monaco gp…yeah until the rain came and he screwed up, which he seems to do quite often in the rain. dont forget silverstone…spinning out 5 or 6 times and finishing dead last in a ferrari.
- hamilton at ferrari? i think thats a dead-end discussion.
Based on Germany, which was fairly rubbish for both, Massa looked quite good compared to Kimi
i think ferrari should go for kubica or rosberg. that would make things pretty interesting. vettel is another good option.
but i dont think teams should think in terms of number 1 or 2 drivers until the time comes to decide based on who is performing. though it is not yet time to decide that at ferrari (which might pose a problem similar to mclarens problem last year). massa has had some good races, but ive been a raikkonen fan for quite some time, so i would still put money on kimi to outperform by the end of the season…but i am really a mclaren fan, so i want him to outperform massa, but not anyone driving a silver car hehe
The guy finished waay ahead of kimi. He constantly out qualifies kimi. He is second on the championship ahead of kimi. Unlike Kimi, when the weekend starts bad, he usually turns it around. Massa isn’t better than Kimi but I don’t think he’s THAT bad either. Why the rush to replace him then? Just because Lewis, overtook him?! Heck, Lewis did the same thing to Kimi last year in Monza. That sort of thing happens to the best of them. Specially, when they are on a SLOW car. I kinda feel bad for this guy as he has to be perfect all the time. I could just imagine how would people react if this guy was the one who ran into the back of another car under a red light in the pit lane or loose the WDC by point by accidentally hitting the rpm limiter in the middle of a title clinching race. my 2 cents.
response to forza ferrari:
all good points, i agree with most of what you said.
i dont think the topic of replacing him was raised just because lewis overtook him. i think it has more to do with his problems in the wet, or his problems under pressure. many of his problems were caused by himself as opposed to bad luck or other drivers, no? in dry perfect conditions he is a very fast driver.
Massa is probably the most under-rated driver in Formula 1. Whenever he does somethign well it’s marginalised and whenever his performance is less than perfect every critic is out to string him up. He’s still a very good driver and there’s no need to replace him.
If hypothetically he was to be replaced, Alonso should NOT be considered given that he’s proven to be untrustworthy. In a hyper-compedative sport such as F1 when you take a “creative” interpretation of the rules (Everybody does it. That’s half the fun)you can’t employ a driver with a history of threatening you with FIA action when he doesn’t get his way. Nore can you trust him not to sell your secrets to the highest bidder.
One driver that they should be looking at is Mark Webber. In one of the less compedative cars he’s consistantly qualified well and consistantly scores points. This has been done by runnign very clean races and going with strong stratedies. He’s also quite an ecperienced driver. Given that he’s a very experienced driver who’s been getting very respectabel results with a low end car, imagine how he’ll perform in a Ferrari.
Give the seat to me. Sure, I would mess up terribly but it would be hilarious watching it on TV and F1 wouldn’t be so boring. Besides, after one year I would have earned enough money to stop working. So it is a win-win situation for all of us.
Alonso should definantly get the Ferarri seat if Felipe Massa gets the door. When Fernando has a good car he can do big things, and is it exciting any more watching him suffer in the places around 5th- 10th? You want to see talented drivers at the front! And he needs his revenge on the Hamilton bias fools at Mclaren.
I agree Alonso for Ferarri!
“Button… he’s cruising at the back of the field and seems to be happy with it. I can not call it a “champion’s attitude”. compare that with Robert’s words after his (first ever) win – “we need to work harder”.
does not suit in Ferrari ? he’s racing in Italy since he was 13, has Italian manager, can speak in this language… damn good driver and well prepared for PR work for Ferrari.”
i cannot see a problem to be hoenst.
when you are driving such a terrible car like the RA108, you cant really do anything other than be positive and do your best. i mean keep whinging about it wouldnt help.
plus i think you dont really know Button well enough.
in one of his interviews, he said himself he HATES it when his race engineer tells him to keep pushing.(just like Renault does like all the time) cuz he is pushing 120% no matter what.
just like he knows the whole Honda team is working as hard as they can. its called TRUST.
I’d be tempted to go with Fernando, he may be a bit pompous but the “eyebrow” man is a great driver, put Kubica as his wingman and we’ll have a repeat of the ‘07 season.
Ferrari’s time is over, let other teams enjoy the championship ( Hamilton ). he is just an excellent driver. any team he will perform. so if Ferrari wants to get back in the race, they need to start coughing up some serious cash and get Hamilton on their side.
Alonso already signed to the seat? just like kimi was in 2005 (f1’s worst kept secret) and then kubica when kimi goes
Alonso? Might be a good match. Kubica I’d like to see him in red. But for a fairy tale I would love to see Schumi back! And put Domenicaly to do what he knows to do. Engineering not race tactics!
yeah posho
that would be a wish come true for me as well…
michael back in a ferrari, ive got all his overtakes from Brazil 2006 on my phone, simply stunning!!
I especially liked the move he put on Raikkonnen into the 1st corner at interlagos after a 5 lap fight, real wheel to wheel stuff!!!
Why should Massa get replaced when he is 3 Championship Points ahead of Kimi? I think Ferrari need to do what Red Bull did and get a secondary team. Then they can test out potentially new drivers for the #1 or #2 seat.
If there was to be any replacements i think that the following should get a drive with them:
Bruno Senna
Jenson Button
Fernando Alonso
Mark Webber
They are the drivers i feel most deserve a seat at ferrari. Why not take Massa out for a race and replace him with M.Schumacher for a race. See what Schumacher can whip up?
Ferrari does not need a good driver such as Kubica, Webber or Vettel. Ferrari needs a CHAMPION.
There are only three drivers right now in F1 who can be labeled as “champions”: Lewis, Raikkonen and Alonso.
Lewis is a McClaren man and he’s going nowhere. Raikkonen seems to not care anymore and I would not be surprised to see him retiring within the next two years. So…
So Alonso is the only solution left for Ferrari. Alonso has the talent, he is consistent and he is a winner. Just the characteristics Ferrari needs.
Obviously: Alonso. He’ll give Hamilton and Kimi a run for their money.
But really a second driver?
A little list?
Why not Jarno Trulli? Fast & consistent. No more to be said.
On top of that he’s Italian. Italy would go berserk if an Italian wins in an Italian machine.
Somewhere here someone posted that Kovalainen was the biggest mistake mclaren ever made.
Written by a complete retard, obviously.
Heiki is fast, and if his car doesn’t brake down: consistent.
It’s not that he hasn’t got talent. It’s just that the others have a bit more so it doesn’t show all the time.
But mind you: he’s really, really good. And two finnish drivers in the same team would be awesome.
Jenson Button? That’s a hard one. When Honda was on the topteams (three, four years ago) I thought he was pretty good.
Not on top never far behind. BUT, indeed, he’s cruisin’ on the back of the grid and he doesn’t seem to mind.
That’s no state of mind for a champion. I’d be frustrated all the time. And while we’re at Honda, why the f* not bring Barichello back at Ferrari?
He already showed he’s gold.
Nelson Piquet? Are you havin’ a laugh? He needs more experience. Make no mistake I like the guy and was really happy when he got his podium,
But he’s not ready. Time will tell if he’s got it. But not right now. Give him a year or two.
And then there is Nico Rosberg. My favorite Zerman. And next to Kimi, Lewis and Fernando one of the 4 greatest talents in F1 at this moment.
It’s not a question IF he ever will be world champion; It’s just WHEN? Not at Williams if you ask me. So why not Ferrari.
Kubica? Sure he did good. But there’s something I can’t quit put my finger on. He’d certainly do good. But consistent?
Besides I think he’s a pretty colorless personality.
Nick Heidfeld? Yea why not. He had a hard time this season: but beware: he’s on his way back to the upper regions, rest assure.
Of why not? That Hot woman out of the indycar series: DANICA PATRICK. She already showed she’s got a winning mentality…but then again
Indycar is totally something else as F1. Just look at Sebastian Bourdais: 2 time Champcar world champion and what has he done in f1? Nothing.
Even that imbecile Sebastian Vettel did better than him. Plus I am ‘pro’ giving Valentino Rossi (yes, Valentino Rossi) another try in a Ferrari…
Being Belgian I can’t wait for our upcoming hope: Jerôme D’ambrosio. A really talented guy who’s doing great in GP2.
He has some problems with his engineers not listening to him & what he wants & says right now, but just you all wait …
Every race he improves so that’s A++ on consistency, A+ on speed.
When Dixon wins IRL this year his prize should be a seat in F1 with Ferrari.
two words FERNANDO ALONSO!!!
He is without a doubt the best driver in the field, he deserves Ferrari and Ferrari deserfve him end of!
I also think that Ferrari should consider changing both their drivers anyway because Massa is (lets face it) not fantastic and Raikkonen seems as enthusiastic about racing as a plank of wood.
As a huge Ferrari fan I say you need Alonso as number 1 and Nick Heidfeld as number 2. The reason I say Nick is because he is a clever racer, would be fine as number 2 and is always there or there abouts.
To Knopp who said…
“Ferrari needs a CHAMPION”.
“There are only three drivers right now in F1 who can be labeled as “champions”: Lewis, Raikkonen and Alonso”.
erm… yes i can see how Raikkonen and Alonso could be labelled “Champions”, Alonso is an ex 2 times F1 champion and Raikkonen is reigning champion…
But you cant call Hamilton a champion untill he is
actually an erm…..Champion!!!
After all he ballsed up last year and threw a championship away, whats to say he wont again this year!!!
To Amy
oh yeah nick Heidfeld, aint he the one getting trounced by kubica at BMW lol…
I would rather have massa anyday!!!!
BAR Don’t exicst any more Hammond!
sebastian vettel….still very young…..younger than hamilton….absolutely quick in torro rosso…a fitting replacement to schumacher legacy as he is from german too….but for an instant success, alonso is the only available and rightful choice
i would like 2 see me in da 2nd car lol
sorry no erm…..
THE STIG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!
STIG IS DA BEST EVERYONE KNOWS IT
to capri dave,
The reason I say Nick is because although he is getting his ass kicked by Kubica, he is a fantastic number 2 driver and a clever racer, he would od good alongside a outright number 1 like Alonso because he is hard to overtake and can always get points for the team as well as making the most out of a bad situation.
just out of interest i noticed massa out qualified Raikkonen again, for the Hungarian g.p lol…
i am one of massas biggest fans and this seems to be his best SCORING season but this season seems to have a jynx on him for instense malasia and espeacially monaco. But this stream of bad luck and in some instenses lack of skill has to end now or ferrari will have to sell him so it is down to the famous nurburgring to see if he stays. If he does leave the people ferrari will be looking at are gonna be.
1 alonso
2 kubica
3 piquet
4 trulli
5 if he didnt have a contract hamilton
6 if he was capable of talking or writing THE STIG
7 ME
8 maybe they could pull schumacher out of retirement (michael not ralph)
Button if he stops crashing
to capri dave
nick is a brilliant driver moron
Massa is worth of a good F1 car seat. He should stay at Ferrari. Ridiculous afirmations about one’s ability to drive and to resist presure.
bring back schumacher!!!
2 of my frinds and me love massa,i hope he dosent have to go
get rid of massa hes a long faced freak that can only drive when he needs the money
Danica Patrick
Jeff Gordon
Bruno Senna (oh no his supreme background should never be mixed with ferrari blood)
Fernando Alonso
Anthony Hamilton (seen as how he attends everything in the f1 scene and is good at crashing – good schumacher replacement in that respect then)
Stirling Moss
John Watson
Massa’s replacement?? How many points did he have? How many points did Kimi have?? Seems to me like they both need to go in exchange for either of the following:
Alonso
Kubica
Vettel
hahaha!
you were all wrong!
massa nearly won the championship!
he deserves his seat more than kimi!
Kubica will win next year cos he is the best!
BMW are a lot better than mclaren!
and kovvy will come good next year! he will beat hamilton!
bring back Montreal!
ferrari used to be the best f1 team around. and lewis now is the best. hes in mclaren. i hate mclaren. So just send lewis to ferrari! itll be awesome. best driver, best team