Even after 17 years, Felipe Massa is not giving up the fight for the Formula 1 World Championship title. A court in London has now cleared the way for a trial.
20.11.2025, 20:20
20.11.2025, 20:24
dpa
Former Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa can continue his fight for the lost 2008 world championship title in court. The High Court in London has ruled that the 44-year-old Brazilian's lawsuit against the International Automobile Federation (FIA), Formula One Management (FOM), the holder of the world championship rights, and former owner Bernie Ecclestone will be allowed to proceed. In addition to the title, the lawsuit is also seeking at least 75 million euros for lost prize money and advertising revenue. Massa filed the lawsuit in March 2024.
The background is the so-called "Crashgate". This relates to the events surrounding the 2008 Singapore race, when Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet junior deliberately crashed his Renault into the crash barriers on the narrow street circuit. The accident and the subsequent safety car phase allowed his then team-mate Fernando Alonso to take victory after Ferrari driver Massa had led for a long time.
The accused deny the accusations
At the end of the season, Englishman Lewis Hamilton won the world championship title with a one-point lead over Massa. The Brazilian is of the opinion that he would have become world champion without the "Crashgate".
As it later turned out, Flavio Briatore, then team boss of Renault, and Pat Symonds, then technical director, had ordered the crash in the fourth-last race of the season. Both were suspended - and later reprieved. In Massa's opinion, the collision involving Piquet Jr. was not investigated immediately, which meant that the world governing body had breached its own rules.
The Fia, FOM and Ecclestone reject all accusations. Most recently, they had applied for the case to be dismissed on the grounds that Massa had performed poorly in Singapore and that the case had been filed too late. Judge Robert Jay has now declared that Massa has no realistic prospect of proving a breach of duty by the Fia towards him. But "he does have a realistic prospect of proving at trial all the elements of his conspiracy to use unlawful means. The same analysis applies to the charge of incitement."
