Felipe Massa is suing the FIA, FOM (Formula One Management) and Bernie Ecclestone regarding the 2008 ‘crashgate’ scandal.
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The Brazilian driver who most famously drove for Ferrari from 2006-2013 has filed a lawsuit, claiming that the result at the infamous 2008 Marina Bay (Singapore) circuit that year should be voided.
Massa lost the 2008 World Championship to Lewis Hamilton by one point. The Brit famously overtook Timo Glock on the last lap of the last race, shutting down the Ferrari party.
Over a decade later, lawyers for Massa have successfully filed suit in London’s High Court. Their case against FOM, ex F1-Chief Bernie Ecclestone, and the governing body of motor sport the FIA is that they failed to investigate the apparent race-fixing that occurred in Singapore.
The team involved in crashgate was Renault F1. Nelson Piquet Jr had seemingly deliberately crashed during the 2008 Marina Bay GP to give teammate Fernando Alonso an advantage. Piquet Jr had crashed into the wall crucially near the time many drivers would need to pit and refuel. Alonso had already pitted, promoting him to the front of the pack after a safety car (SC.)
Back then, pitting under the SC resulted in a penalty. This meant many drivers either had to take a penalty or they pitted after the SC dropping them to the back of the pack.
Alonso, with fresh tyres and a load of fuel, went on to win the race from 15th on the grid.
What is important to understand here is that Felipe Massa was leading the Grand Prix before the crash.
Scrutiny against the FIA isn’t a new thing especially of late. President of the FIA Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been accused of tinkering with the result of the Saudi Arabia GP last year. He has also been accused of attempting to artificially deem the Las Vegas track unsafe before the race weekend. These all come from a whistleblower and are under investigation.
Ecclestone also has recently been in a spot of trouble himself. The 93 year old failed to declare £400m held in a trust in Singapore. He was sentenced last year to 17 months in prison, suspended for two years. The case resulted in a total repayment of around £650m to HMRC.
The law firm representing Massa explains how they believe the FIA failed to investigate the crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix properly. Had this conspiracy event not happened, Felipe Massa ultimately would have won the World Championship.
Reports find Massa is seeking compensation of up to £150m.
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