Felipe Massa

[TwistedArmco]

Is Massa a support driver for a champion, like Irvine, Salo and Barichello before him?
If so, how does he compare to them?

Or is he a potential champion in his own right?
If so, how does he compare with the current elite (KR, LH, FA, RK)?

Discuss..

[raikkonen4ever]

I can't say that he just a support drivers for the champion
Because there is no more team order in Formula 1, it's all depends on the championship situation
Just like last year Felipe didn't have a chance to win the championship so he helped Kimi to win it, and he is done it

He has a potential to be a champion, maybe he could be a champion in the next couple of years
But I think he is slightly below Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton, and Kubica in terms of driving skill :cheezy:

He has to adapt with this season's car (without TC and the other electronic assist)
He made a several mistakes so far this season, like in Oz and Malaysia,
But I think he is getting better and better every race and he is one of the contender for this year championship

[mikhailv]

personally, hes my championship favourite. Im an Alonso fan, but because fernando isnt in contention, and Kimi already has one WDC, and I dont like lewis. Massa is my choice. But not just because of that, but i believe he is a genuinely brilliant racer. Shakey start but a great come back. Fantastic in the wet albeit monaco, and good all round driver.

Come on felipe!

[TwistedArmco]

personally, hes my championship favourite. Im an Alonso fan, but because fernando isnt in contention, and Kimi already has one WDC, and I dont like lewis. Massa is my choice. But not just because of that, but i believe he is a genuinely brilliant racer. Shakey start but a great come back. Fantastic in the wet albeit monaco, and good all round driver.

Come on felipe!

Yeah, that's exactly why I started the thread. I too am an Alonso fan, and I'd love to see a fluke win this year, but since Felipe's recent string of good performances, 2 wins, 2 poles, 4 podiums Massa 5-1 Raikkonen in Quali, I realized that I really would like to see Massa as champion.

[TwistedArmco]

He has a potential to be a champion, maybe he could be a champion in the next couple of years
But I think he is slightly below Raikkonen, Alonso, Hamilton, and Kubica in terms of driving skill :cheezy:

I would agree with both, but I'm not sure about future at Ferrari.
How would you rate him with Barrichello? - although team orders are banned, I'm sure they would engineer his race like at Interlagos last year if Kimi could win it.

[David Smith]

One guy on the grid that is trully a teamplayer and such a nice guy is Massa, would love to see him win a championship. He has always played second fiddle in ferrari but has never complained once, he does whats best for the team and always has done. Ofcourse it might be because hes got of to bad starts and has had to do this but still doesnt complain which is great to see.

Saying this, i cant see massa winning a championship soon especially as hes struggling with the new regulations atm.
But hope to see it sometime

[Sanredrose]

Massa becoming a champion would draw curtains on people who doubted his ability to win a WDC. Right now i am not expecting Massa to win it. He was good last year as well in the first half of the WDC and was leading Kimi in overall points at the end of first 7 races or so. But after that he struggled in other gp's to match Kimi's consistency or pace. The reason why Fernando & Kimi could become champions were because they demonstrated a great level of consistent performance. I would see FA / KR's failure rate to be 1 GP in year ! I don't think Massa has that consistency. May be if Fernando was in a Ferrari, i would be betting upon him to win the title !

[TwistedArmco]

Massa becoming a champion would draw curtains on people who doubted his ability to win a WDC. Right now i am not expecting Massa to win it. He was good last year as well in the first half of the WDC and was leading Kimi in overall points at the end of first 7 races or so. But after that he struggled in other gp's to match Kimi's consistency or pace. The reason why Fernando & Kimi could become champions were because they demonstrated a great level of consistent performance. I would see FA / KR's failure rate to be 1 GP in year ! I don't think Massa has that consistency. May be if Fernando was in a Ferrari, i would be betting upon him to win the title !

In truth, although I like him, I think he's not even as good as Barichello was at his peak. It's just that Kimi's not as good as Schumi ever was. I'd like to see him win it, but he'll need massive McLaren/Kimi misfortune.

[megasyxx]

in my opinion, he's like dc...but a little more consistent, i'd give him a 25% chance to win a wdc in a competitive car, so there's a chance..let's just waaaaiiiiiitttttt ans see.

[MansellRed5]

I don't rate Massa very highly at all. I think he'd suck if you put him in a car just 8 years older than his current machine. However, I admire his ability to bounce back, I always wondered in 2002 how he ever got an F1 because he seemed so s***. Then, after a year as a Ferrari tester, he returned in 2004 as a much more mature driver. Less mistakes and generally impressive. Even at Ferrari, he's made mistakes but he has driven very well too. It's his mistake making I think which has made me doubt his ability as a driver. I mean, considering how many spins etc. he had in the technology infested cars of the past couple of years. I expected him to be very laughable without TC. After Australia and Malaysia, I assumed my theory and opinion was right. Despite winning in Bahrain, he still had a spin-infested practice in Spain. Although he won in Turkey, I thought Lewis did a much better job and felt that Massa's strategy won him the race. But it was last weekend in Monaco, despite cocking up in practice again. I was stunned when he grabbed pole on a circuit he doesn't like and didn't rate himself very highly on. Even more amazing to me was his race performance in the wet. I'll be very honest and say I expected him to donut into Raikkonen at the first corner due to the slippery conditions and no TC, but he didn't and he lead very strongly in the early stages. I then assumed that Ferrari must've put Michael Schumacher in the car before the race started, with Massa's helmet on. I have to hand it to the guy though, he's showing that he's matured and has adapted very well without TC and can be consistantly quick. "Two thumbs WAY WAY up!"

[syncmaster]

i think massa has the potential to win championship even after making mistakes in Australia and Malaysia and coming back in championship with 2win and 2podiums is fine.Massa will win 2008 championship

[TwistedArmco]

I don't rate Massa very highly at all. I think he'd suck if you put him in a car just 8 years older than his current machine.

I think most people would suck in a car 'just' eight years older than their current machine. Minardi were at the back with a two year old car in 2001, and Ferrari's dominant F2004 car only got them into the midfield in 2005.
Explain yourself.

[sweet16]

I find it hard to say. I admire Felipe as a driver and he is very skilled, but I think his skills lay more in qualifying and then during the race, Kimi keeps within shouting distance and passes him in the pit stops. I think Felipe has it in him and certainly has the car under him, he just needs to find a way to completely outsmart Kimi

[TwistedArmco]

I find it hard to say. I admire Felipe as a driver and he is very skilled, but I think his skills lay more in qualifying and then during the race, Kimi keeps within shouting distance and passes him in the pit stops. I think Felipe has it in him and certainly has the car under him, he just needs to find a way to completely outsmart Kimi

Yeah, I think that if anything, he's a qualifying specialist. But judging from what I just watched in Quali, unless Kimi foils himself like in Monaco, most of the time he will have enough to best Massa. Then Massa also has to content with the Mac of Hamilton and the BM of Kubica.

[Sanredrose]

I find it hard to say. I admire Felipe as a driver and he is very skilled, but I think his skills lay more in qualifying and then during the race, Kimi keeps within shouting distance and passes him in the pit stops. I think Felipe has it in him and certainly has the car under him, he just needs to find a way to completely outsmart Kimi

Yeah, I think that if anything, he's a qualifying specialist. But judging from what I just watched in Quali, unless Kimi foils himself like in Monaco, most of the time he will have enough to best Massa. Then Massa also has to content with the Mac of Hamilton and the BM of Kubica.

It would be interesting to see how Massa performs in Canada. All through this year he has managed a front row start and got results. Now he is starting 7th with people all around him. It would be interesting to see how he defends Kovalainen at the start. Lets see .. If Massa has got the potential then he should be able to make it to podium without any luck !

If Kimi or FA starts in 7th or 8th i would be very sure they would finish in the top 3. But the same i don't feel with Massa !