Stefano Domenicali backs Felipe Massa
Stefano Domenicali, the team principal at Ferrari, has backed his Brazilian driver, Felipe Massa, and has expressed his confidence that the driver will hit his strides in the next season.
Massa rose to the top of the standings briefly after the 2010 Grand Prix, but his form took a dip in the following races as his teammate, Fernando Alonso spread his wings.
Furthermore, the infamous incident in Germany did not help his cause either. The incident, which attracted huge controversy, culminated in Ferrari being dealt a fine of 100,000 US dollars and, later, being referred to the World Motorsport Governing Council.
The controversy sparked off when Felipe Massa, while leading a race with 8 laps to go, was given a coded message on the team radio. The Race engineer said "Felipe, Fernando is faster than you, do you understand?". Felipe responded by letting his teammate through,
and Alonso ended up winning the race.
Massa ended the season in 6th place and was 112 points below Sebastian Vettel, who ended up winning his first World Championship.
Massa was not at all helped by the negative comments made by Ferrari president, Luca di Montezemolo, who was not impressed by a couple of his performances. The Brazilian, though, was not dithered and continued to work hard. There were even reports in the
media that Massa might be replaced by Sebastian Vettel next season.
Stefano Domenicali, however, said that he has confidence in Massa, and has no doubt that he would be able to put the disappointing season behind him by putting up a spectacular display in the next one. Stefano said Felipe started the season after recovering
from the horrific accident in Hungary, and it was astonishing how he managed to make it back to the track within months after slipping into a comma due to the life threatening injury. He went on to say that the weight of the accident must be what has keept
him down this season, but with another season under his belt, Felipe would certainly be ready when the first race comes in Bahrain, in March.
Domenicali said:
"In fact, he has often been under pressure and in these situations; he has delivered in a way that surprised many people. He is a total professional, who has grown here with us and we can count on him. I expect him to be motivated to the maximum... We want
to have two strong drivers capable of winning: that is what you need if you aspire to winning both titles."
Brushing aside the suggestions made this season about Massa being the 2nd fiddle to Fernando Alonso, the Ferrari principal said that both drivers started the season on the same base, and there was no difference in the level of assistance and facilities
provided to both drivers throughout the season.
Stefano ended by saying that one more thing that he was really pleased about was the camaraderie between the two drivers in his team. He asserted that Alonso and Massa had amazing chemistry on and off the track. He went on to say that when teammates share
such great understanding and enthusiasm, it is always a great sign for the team.
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