Massa sues F1 and FIA: the 2008 world championship ends up in court

Last April, Felipe Massa announced his intention to put together a team of lawyers to take legal action against the final result of the 2008 Formula 1 championship, lost by a single point against Lewis Hamilton's McLaren.

Towards the end of 2023, the Brazilian had moved from words to action, writing a letter to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and FOM chief executive Stefano Domenicali outlining details of the possible legal action. Both parties responded, but asked for time, given the complexity of the case.

However, this Monday Massa's representatives confirmed that a legal action has been filed at the High Court of Justice against the three parties involved, namely Formula 1, the International Federation and Bernie Ecclestone, at the time in charge of FOM . The Brazilian, in fact, believes that the result of the Marina Bay race, influenced by the famous “crashgate”, should be cancelled.

The story of that Grand Prix is ​​now well known, with Renault driver Nelson Piquet deliberately crashing into the barriers to bring in the Safety Car, so that teammate Fernando Alonso could benefit. In the confusion of the pit stops behind the safety car, Massa set off again with the fuel filler still attached to the car, thus having to stop in the pit lane to wait for the mechanics. On the contrary, Hamilton ranked second, thus gaining several points on his rival in the fight for the world title.

In an interview last year, Ecclestone said there was enough information available at the time to investigate the case and overturn the result even before the end of the season. However, the former F1 boss later said he did not remember giving the interview.

The Brazilian law firm Vieira Rezende Advogados underlined this aspect in a note released on Monday, with which it also announced the start of the legal process that will bring the parties sued in the case to court: “Mr. Massa requests a declaration that the FIA ​​has violated its regulations by failing to promptly investigate Nelson Piquet Junior's crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix and that had he acted correctly, Massa would have won the drivers' championship that year.”

“Mr Massa is also seeking damages for the significant financial loss suffered as a result of the failure of the FIA, in which Mr Ecclestone and FOM were also complicit.”

Bernie Ecclestone, Felipe Massa, Williams

Photo credit: Keith Sutton

“Attempts to find an amicable solution were unsuccessful, leaving Mr. Massa with the only choice of initiating legal proceedings,” reads the note from the law firm, which also refers to those letters sent by Massa last year to attempt to resolve the situation before filing a lawsuit.

The FIA ​​is also in the eye of the storm for what has emerged in recent weeks, in particular for the investigation into Mohammed Ben Sulayem who, according to a report, attempted to intervene in the homologation of the Las Vegas circuit and the result of the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP to cancel a penalty given to Alonso.

“Recent events of course demonstrate that Formula 1's issues of transparency and integrity remain relevant, and it is clear that serious work needs to be done to restore its credibility and long-term future.” Massa is reportedly seeking compensation of between £60 million and £150 million.