Massa must “prove himself” – Montezemolo

F1 Fanatic round-up

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In the round-up: Luca di Montezemolo warns Felipe Massa to raise his game.

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Montezemolo warns Felipe “You have to prove yourself” (La Gazzetta dello Sport)

“Let’s hope he can finish the season with a good result in Brazil, we expect great things from him in 2012 and then we’ll decide how to proceed. Let’s say he’ll have to prove himself next season.”

Brazilian Grand Prix – Massa’s Ferrari Century (Ferrari)

Ferrari have counted right this time – it is Felipe Massa’s 100th start for them this weekend.

F1 Fanatic via Twitter

“On Friday Luiz Razia will drive in place of Jarno Trulli in the first practice session for Lotus.”

Wickens pushing for 2012 Formula 1 race seat (GP Update)

“My goal is to get a race seat in any Formula 1 team. I feel like I’m ready, I’m 22 and there are now a lot of drivers on the grid who I have actually competed against. So I see no reason why I shouldn’t be able to join them there.”

A good sign from Bahrain (Joe Saward)

“This is all well and good but it is still not clear whether a Grand Prix is a good idea as it could still act as a target for protest, which would not help Bahrain and would certainly not help F1.”

Bahrain on edge before report on protest crackdown (Associated Press via Google News)

“The government’s conciliatory tone in advance suggests authorities in the island kingdom believe it could cast a harsh light on the tactics used against demonstrators and already noted in rights groups allegations: widespread arrests, purges from workplaces and universities, destruction of Shiite mosques and jail house abuses.”

BBC Tees interview with Rob Smedley (YouTube)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ86mNynt30

No fear for Jenson Button (Sporting Life)

“We have more security this year. I think every driver you see will have a police escort, and they should do.”

Gianluca Pisanello via Twitter

“Passport, FIA pass, computer. Everything ready for Brazil. Now only missing a bulletproof vest for the trips to the circuit…”

The Monaco Grand Prix opener (BBC)

“Watch the introduction to the 2011 Monaco GP which has won the Royal Television Society’s prize for Programme Content Sequences.”

Ann Bradshaw via Twitter

“Sad news that Sheridan Thynne died at the weekend. A gentleman and a one-off. Such fun to work with at Williams. Thinking of his wife Eve.”

Matt Cox (McLaren) via Twitter

“Going to visit Ayrton Senna’s grave on Monday to pay our respects.”

Follow F1 news as it breaks using the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app.

Comment of the day

Tilkedromes and DRS passes: the future of F1? This from GeeMac:

So the highest proportion of DRS-assisted passes were seen at Abu Dhabi (Tilkedrome), Valencia (Tilkedrome), India (Tilkedrome), Turkey (Tilkedrome) and Spain (final sector reworked by Tilke).

Not knocking the dude (I acknowledge that his hands are tied when it comes to designing new tracks), it is just an observation.

GeeMac

From the forum

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Damonsmedley!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

And happy birthday to Ross Brawn who is 57 today!

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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62 comments on “Massa must “prove himself” – Montezemolo”

  1. @GeeMac makes a good point about DRS zones. And with Spain, Tilke made a bad track even worse. I can’t stand the final section of the track now.

    @KeithCollantine, out of interest, do you count a “start” as “someone lining up to take the start procedure/lining up in the pit lane for the start procedure”? I know it’s a minefield, but that’s what I work to and I was just wanting to compare. Maybe we should just start a massive database, publish our “complete” statistics and call it the “(should be) official F1 stats”. Need to work on the catchy title, now I think of it.

    1. @noelinho

      do you count a “start” as “someone lining up to take the start procedure/lining up in the pit lane for the start procedure”?

      If you mean “does a driver who retires on the formation lap count as a starter?”, then I’d say no, as infamously was the case for most of the drivers at the 2005 United States Grand Prix. This takes us back to Ferrari getting Massa’s number of race starts wrong a few weeks ago.

      1. I was more thinking that I count it as a start if they either a) complete the formation lap and line up on the grid at the lights, or b) don’t line up at the grid, but enter the race by leaving the pit lane after the lights go out.

        So I wouldn’t count it as a start if they pull in (e.g. Indy, 2005), but I would count a start if they line up, the lights go out, but they stall/clutch fails/some other problem on the start line.

        1. but you don’t count starts if the race is restarted, doesn’t happen now but it used to.

      2. He shouldn’t be allowed to celebrate the actual event if he’s already celebrated a fake one :P

        Or was the one he celebrated already for 150 total starts rather than 100 Ferrari starsts?

        1. That’s right. The previous celebration was for Massa having done 150 starts. IIRC, Massa is on course to have the second most starts for Ferrari, ahead of Barrichello, and behind only Michael Schumacher.

          1. IIRC, Massa will be third behind Schumacher and Barrichello. Both Brazilians have completed 6 seasons with the Prancing Horse, but Felipe missed half of ’09.
            I’d prefer if he was second though!

  2. I agree with Monti, Massa really needs to show some good results its just painful to watch him at the moment.

    1. To be fair, although he’s had a disappointing season, the last few races he’s had some good pace which has unfortunately been overshadowed by on-track incidents.

      1. Some of the incidients weren’t helped for the fact that Massa is too defensive in his driving. Classic case was Melbourne where he seemed to be overly aggressive in defending against Jenson – who had the faster car and made every means to avoid any incident with him. But with against the likes of Lewis, he wasn’t (and I wouldn’t expect it) afforded any luxury – hence the incidents. Would be interesting to see how many on-track incidents each driver has had this year.

    2. I think it is really funny people are still talking about it and even more so someone from Ferrari doing it. First of all the golden rule is to talk about problems internally (thats how the greats do it). Second: we all know this. Everyone watching F1 knows this, even someone who never heard of them but only looks at the championship points knows this. Massa knows this better than anybody, he must be the one who is the most upset about it. This is really a non topic.

      1. That and it can’t help Massa, with the whole repeatedly mentioning the axe hanging above his head thing.

  3. “My goal is to get a race seat in any Formula 1 team. I feel like I’m ready, I’m 22 and there are now a lot of drivers on the grid who I have actually competed against. So I see no reason why I shouldn’t be able to join them there.”

    I hope he gets a seat.

  4. Happy Birthday Smeddles!

    1. Yeah, Happy Birthday @damonsmedley!

      1. Wow! Thank you very much for the kind wishes @AUS_Steve, @BasCB, @ScuderiaVincero, @WasiF1, @Jarred-Walmsley, @Magnificent-Geoffy, @David-A, @AndrewTanner, @bosyber and @Girts!

        As Magffrey says, you all do mean a lot to me. :)

  5. Montezemolo is exactly right! Massa’s season when compared to Alonso’s is absolutely diabolical and no amount of excuses can…well….excuse it!

    Same goes for Webber against Vettel. Inexcusable!

    Naturally, unless the improbable occurs and team-mates tie on points, there will always be a winner and a loser.

    Only McLaren can say that they have two drivers whose skill levels are comparable, regardless of who you say is better. That’s the way it should be.

    Vettel, Alonso, Button and even Hamilton can be commended for their driving this year.

    Webber….and most certainly Massa should be put in stocks and have the public throw tomatoes at them!!

    Personally, I wouldn’t have given Massa seat in 2012, but Ferrari have and so be it. But if he doesn’t perform , to at least an adequate level, in 2012. It should be his last year!….at Ferrari anyway!

    End rant.

    1. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again; Massa is improving.

      I’ll admit that despite being fond of him, I don’t think he’s done well enough this year. In fact, he may have actually done better last year in comparison to his team-mate, particularly in the first half of the season.

      But Dr. Sid Watkins once said (if I recall correctly) that it would take at least two years to fully recover from an injury like that. If he’s not coming good by the end of 2012, then I’m afraid to say that the injury really did ruin his career. It would be a massive shame, but I refuse to give up on him yet.

  6. Monty & Ferrari sum up F1 quite well really, & I even like Ferrari. Well, that’s life.

  7. I’m hearing talk that a Williams driver announcement could be just three or four days away. It’s also been implied that Raikkonen and Sutil could pair up if Williams are uncomfortable with the investigation into the PDVSA sponsorship deal. However, this Tweet from Adam Cooper is being presented as evidence of the supposed arrangement, so I think we can chalk this one up to Raikkonen fans reading far too much into things. Again.

    1. Also, this report from Italy claims that the Raikkonen-Williams deal is off because the sponsors have lost interest in him. They’re predicting a Barrichello-Bottas line-up in 2012.

      1. What aboud Maldonado? (not that I will be sad if he goes)

        1. The Italians seem to think that a) Venezuela will terminate the PDVSA-Williams sponsorship deal because it is illegal under Venezuelan law, or b) Williams will terminate the sponsorship because they are uncomfortable with it (regardless of whether it is legal or not).

          1. @Prisoner-Monkeys

            The Italians seem to think that a) Venezuela will terminate the PDVSA-Williams sponsorship deal because it is illegal under Venezuelan law, or b) Williams will terminate the sponsorship because they are uncomfortable with it (regardless of whether it is legal or not).

            What about the fact he’s the worst driver in F1 at the moment with an uncontrollable temper that we’ve seen boil over already and that he’s not going to get anywhere? :P I know it’s harsh, but Pastor really has annoyed me this year. Abu Dhabi and Spa were the two best examples of why we don’t need him in F1.

      2. Barrichello… Ugh. What is he doing coasting around in F1 at the age of 40 something. Please bow out, and let someone who deserves a chance in F1 actually drive for Williams.

        1. He’s only “coasting” because the FW33 isn’t exactly good for anything else.

          1. For all the stinging criticism Maldonado gets, Rubens is only just beating him in qualifying and race results. That’s not a shining endorsement of RB’s driving this year.

            He did okay in 2009 and 2010 to be fair, but has he been good enough this year to keep his seat with so many waiting in the wings?

          2. @David-A @Todfod Yes. I want him to race on next year. I refuse to believe he’s lost all of his pace in less than 12 months when we saw him regularly scoring points and making it into Q3 last year against who many believe is a future World Champion.

            I’d love to see him race on and announce his retirement when he feels like it. He needs a proper send off, because he’s a true legend of the sport and I’m going to miss him dearly.

  8. not a bad article considering it’s from the offical f1 website!-
    http://www.formula1.com/news/features/2011/11/12813.html

  9. Have a great birthday @Damonsmedley!

  10. Happy Birthday to Damonsmedley & Ross hope for the later Schumacher can give him a good gift.

  11. As for Massa I think 2012 will be the last time Ferrari will give him a chance, then they will focus on someone like Perez.

  12. Waking up to COTD was a very welcome surprise! :)

    1. Keen observation :D

  13. What is the latest on Bahrain? The race is still officially on the calendar, pencilled in for 22 April, but have the FIA or Bernie said anything recently?

    1. Nope, nothing as yet.

    2. Well, the BICI report is supposed to be handed over to the king in a ceremony today and then published online at about 5pm Bahraini time. Should be interesting reading.

    3. Bernie should man up and cancel Bahrain GP or at least set a deadline. Reports coming from there are still appalling and a serious organization must keep there hands away from blood, the potential damage to F1’s image seems higher than expected profit.
      By the way, Keith, is FOM’s Annual Report availabe for general public?

  14. Happy Birthday @Damonsmedley!

  15. You don’t mean to tell me that it happens to be @DamonSmedley’s birthday?

    How’s about I try something a little different this time?

    For Damon, I think a sonnet I’ll send.
    As it’s difficult for me to sum up,
    This young man whom is both my valued friend
    And great rival from the Collantine Cup.
    It’s nine years since Damon became smitten,
    With the majesty of our favourite sport.
    After Jenson, he has named his kitten,
    Proving he is of the Fanatic sort.
    A virtue of kindness runs deep within,
    In Melbourne, I saw this with my own eyes.
    I know we all mean a great deal to him,
    And he is a joy to have in our lives.
    ‘Though I know that this may sound slightly gay,
    We all love you Damon, Happy Birthday!

    1. You know, I’d probably say yes if you just asked me out on a date. No need to do all of this fancy stuff! But only if @AUS_Steve was fine with it, of course.

      (Thank you!)

      1. @magnificent-geoffrey @damonsmedley Happy birthday Damon and great sonnet, Mag!

      2. @damonsmedley

        I’m not very good at poems or sonnets,
        While Geoff always has one under his bonnet,
        Won the Cup, and took victory in Italy,
        He is one of the few who supports Vitaly,
        Started watching F1 in 2002,
        When non-Ferrari fans were feeling mighty blue,
        Damon’s presence is friendly and fair,
        Dislike this fellow? You wouldn’t dare.
        So from Britain, on the other end of the earth,
        I wish you a very happy day, of your birth!

        1. Nicely done, both capture you well in my view @damonsmedley, I hope you have a great birthday, with a very good Brazilian GP to look forward too later in the week!

        2. Thank you very much @David-A! That was brilliant but I have no idea what I did to deserve that. You’re mad! :P

          Thank you to everyone else that sent me their wishes today as well.

  16. Happy birthday Mr. Smedley! By the way, could I please get the 2008 version of Massa back? :D

    Hope you have a wonderful day @damonsmedley

  17. I liked that interview with Rob Smedley.

    ‘Do you want to go to the 88 British GP Rob?’
    ‘No not really…’

    :P

  18. I agree with LdM on this one. 2010 was forgivable, but apart from his handbags with Hamilton this year he’s been largely quiet.

  19. Just when we are talking about the gimmick of DRS being something out of Mario Kart, look what we have here!

    1. Great fun, and nice job by Nintendo. But they’ll have to make DRS an upgrade to find in the game!

  20. Ugh, I’ve no idea how the BBC won an award for that. My first thought upon seeing it was “This is silly. What’s the point?” It’s very Top Gear-esque – i.e silly, embarassing and a bit cocky and arrogant.

    It’s overproduced and unnecessary features like that which I think are the reason the BBC don’t feel they can afford to keep the contract to Formula 1. I have no experience of Sky’s production of sporting events, but I’m actually looking forward to it next year now in the hope it’s a bit more down to earth, rather than pandering to the lowest common denominator, which is what I feel the BBC have been doing (this year in particular).

    1. Completely agree, @Dan-Thorn. It stupid and pointless for the BBC to try and do anything remotely interesting like that intro.

      Who cares if that intro was superbly produced, expertly edited and drew a spectacular visual parallel between the unpredictable chaos of the casino culture Monte-Carlo is so famous for and the clinical, scientific controlled world of Formula 1? We don’t want to the BBC’s coverage to be entertaining do we? It would’ve been a lot better if the show had simply opened with Jake Humphrey staring at the camera saying “hello. We are at Monaco.”

      Hopefully, Sky won’t bother with making any of their own quirky, interesting, well-made and fun intros like this that help to excite both the hardcore and the casual fan base for their coverage next year. In fact, Sky shouldn ‘t bother with a pre-race show or with anything that even attempts to be remotely entertaining at all. They should just show the race and leave it at that. Nice and dull. That’s what we all really want, isn’t that right guys?

      1. Perhaps my first sentence was a little over the top – it is very well made, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. A pre race show should be entertaining, but it can be done in a far less ostentatious way.

        I’m as angry as anyone that I’ll have to pay to watch Formula One next year, and I personally feel that features like this are partly the reason why. I have been entertained by some of their VTs, but I wouldn’t miss them if they were gone. The on screen chemistry between the presenters provides the real entertainment (for me, anyway) and they don’t need to do all these flashy things…

        1. @dan-thorn It was absolutely awful. It still sticks in my mind now. Very much over-the-top.

      2. It was perfectly possible for the BBC to do an intro that wasn’t absurdly cheesy and cringe worthy. All it did was make fans press mute until Jake went away.

  21. Massa has had ‘time to prove himself’. Whilst there is no obvious candidate to replace him at the minute, I think Ferrari should take a risk and employ a young gun. Look at kimi and alonso they both only had one full season before being but in top cars/teams. even JB had a fair crack at it and obviously hamilton. My point is that only Webber can claim to making his way up through the ranks so to speak. Felipe had his chance in a top seat and has wasted it since his accident. 137 points is a lot.

  22. wrong link on “Bahrain on edge before report on protest crackdown (Associated Press via Google News) “

    1. Fixed, thanks.

  23. sid_prasher (@)
    23rd November 2011, 18:48

    Belated birthday wishes @Damonsmedley.

    Ferrari obviously cannot win the constructor’s title without both their drivers scoring heavily – so if the car is decent and Massa is not on the podium next year, I think it will be a fair call to drop him :(

  24. You know the DRS is not a new system, the 1sec rule is however.
    In the mid/late 60’s some cars had adjustable front and rear wings. Actually in 69 Jackie Stewart won the WDC in a Matra-Ford with “DRS”, and I think in that year McLaren-Ford & Brabham were using it too.

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