‘Crashgate’ culprit reminds Felipe Massa over Ferrari’s botched pitstop as the latter questions legality of the 2008 Singapore GP
Nelson Piquet Jr reckons Felipe Massa could have won the race if not for the failed Ferrari pitstop.
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Nelson Piquet Jr, Felipe Massa
Felipe Massa has been in the news recently. The Brazilian driver is considering legal options to challenge the legality of the 2008 Singapore GP. Fernando Alonso won the race in the midst of the ‘Crashgate’ scandal. After former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone admitted knowing about the incident, Massa expressed his views on canceling this race as Felipe lost out on crucial points at this round that eventually lost him the title.
However, Nelson Piquet Jr., the driver who was instructed by Renault to cause the Crashgate scandal, has expressed his views on Felipe Massa’s statement. Piquet Jr mentioned that Massa should remember that Ferrari caused the fuel hose issue for the Brazilian in the pits. This, in turn, caused Mass to lose out on points to Lewis Hamilton.
Nelson Piquet Jr. highlighted that his crash did not “affect a person directly – it was a team order to help someone within our team.” Moreover, Piquet Jr. stated that the team didn’t expect to hamper Felipe Massa’s race. The main aim of the scandal was to allow Fernando Alonso to get an edge over the rest. He continued, “It wasn’t to disturb Felipe.”
Felipe Massa “could have won the race,” says Nelson Piquet Jr.
The former Renault driver mentioned that the race could have had other possibilities. The French team, spearheaded by Flavio Briatore, could only secure Fernando Alonso’s strategy through the Crashgate. He continued, “It was nothing like that. We don’t know what happened, you know?” Subsequently, Piquet pointed out that Felipe Massa could have beaten the Spanish driver to the race win if Ferrari had not botched his pitstop.
Piquet concluded, “Felipe could very well have won that race if that hadn’t happened at the pit stop.” As such, it is clear that Nelson Piquet Jr is hinting at Felipe Massa to stop considering challenging the 2008 Singapore race result. As Nelson pointed out that the race was a lot more than just the Crashgate scandal. Felipe having the chance to score points as usual if not for the pitstop issue.
However, it remains to be seen whether Felipe Massa acknowledges the remarks made by his fellow countryman. Massa has been adamant about trying to salvage his lost world title in the past few days, as the 41-year-old tries to use Bernie Ecclestone’s comments as proof of the need to nullify the race result. Perhaps Massa will consider the words of the driver who caused this scandal.
In case you missed it:
- “They treated me like a dog,” Nelson Piquet Jr. recounts Crashgate amidst Felipe Massa’s legal drama
- “To replace Kimi,” Banned Russian F1 racer shocks fans with Scuderia Ferrari claim
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Armaan Agarwal
(2348 Articles Published)