Alonso moves forward as Massa takes penalty

2012 United States Grand Prix

Posted on

| Written by

Fernando Alonso will start from seventh on the grid for the United States Grand Prix after Ferrari decided to change the gearbox on Felipe Massa’s car.

Massa will take a five-place penalty for changing the gearbox, dropping him from sixth on the grid to eleventh. Alonso in turn will move up from eighth to seventh.

Significantly, both will now start from the clean side of the track, which is expected to confer a significant advantage over those starting off-line.

Ferrari issued the following statement: “We’ve decided to accept the penalty normally associated with the gearbox change on Felipe’s car which means that he’ll get a five-place grid penalty.

“The reason for this was for strategy considerations, with the objective of maximising Alonso’s start potential given that he’s still in with a chance to win the drivers’ championship.

“We saw yesterday that starting from the dirty side of the track would have been penalizing: there was a significant risk of finding ourselves too far behind the leaders at the end of the first lap.

“It was a decision agreed by both drivers. We’ve always maintained that the interests of the team come before that of the individual drivers and this has always been our very transparent policy. Felipe has fully comprehended the reasons behind this decision and so he’s once again proven his total dedication to the team – something for which we would publicly like to express our gratitude.”

The FIA confirmed Ferrari “broke one seal on the gearbox of car number six, driver Felipe Massa. The seal was applied on the [right-hand side] cross shaft cover.”

See the updated United States Grand Prix starting grid.

2012 United States Grand Prix

Browse all 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix articles

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...

Got a potential story, tip or enquiry? Find out more about RaceFans and contact us here.

161 comments on “Alonso moves forward as Massa takes penalty”

  1. Desperate times…

    Certainly the right decision though. Seems to be a huge difference between the two sides of the grid.

    1. @red-andy even if the motive is valid as the dity side of the grid is really bad, it’s a hideous move.

      1. I see no reason why this is a “hideous move”. Ferrari are competing to win the Drivers’ Championship, and are giving Alonso every legal aid/advantage possible to do just that.

        Ferrari are simply Playing to Win.

        1. What if the rest of the field start playing to win? How many grid alterations in the last minute are acceptable? :D

          1. The rest of the field isn’t fighting for the championship, though if Red Bull were to do the same to Webber (no point, he’s already ahead and can hold up Alonso anyway) it’d be perfectly legal (and funny to see).

            Also shows up how much of a joke the gearbox rule is anyways. Give them X amount of gearboxes (6 possibly) that they can use throughout the season, like they can with engines.

      2. I think it’s a pretty smart move. Hypothetically speaking, if the cars on the dirty side of that part of the grid lose two places and the cars on the clean side gain two, then before the gearbox change the two Ferrari’s would be running 8th and 10th after lap 1. Now they’d be running 5th and 9th. Alonso the big gainer of course and crucially ahead, whilst Massa doesn’t lose out too much from where he would have been either.

        Although I can understand why this move will upset some people…

      3. It’s entirely within the rules – and it’s entirely within F1’s sporting traditions, such as they are.
        Every team (and particularly Ferrari’s competition for the championship this season) attempts to push the rules as far as they are able.
        As for team mates helping each other, even the great Fangio won championships by ‘borrowing’ the other car half way through the race.

        And no, this is not the same thing as deliberately crashing. Not even close.

        1. I don’t agree that it is within the rules or sporting traditions.

          McLaren were found guilty in 2007 of compromising one of its cars. The stewards decision was:
          “The actions of the team in the final minutes of Qualifying are considered prejudicial to the interests of the competition and to the interests of motor sport generally. The penalty to be applied is that such points (if any) in the 2007 Formula One Constructors Championship as accrue to the team as a result of their participation in the 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix wilt be withdrawn.”
          http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/61373
          No reference was ever made in the report to “team orders – so I really don’t understand why Ferarri have been allowed to do it this time. The only difference is Massa’s consent.

    2. The difference is 4-5 position if the even side of the grid gains 2 places.

    3. Part of me was hoping they do do it, so maybe the silly rule is changed.

    4. At least they were honest about it.

      1. @hohum Have our expectations really fallen so low that we now praise people for not lying?

        I don’t give out points for not attempting to cover up the undeniable.

        1. keithcollantine, it’s sad but true.

        2. @keithcollantine Good point, I think we’ve become very accustomed to teams operating (arguable) team orders in the shadows, particularly while team orders were banned (a la Ferrari’s denial in Germany 2010).

          The only thing I wonder is if Massa has truly managed to get some pace back, and there’s a similar situation in 2013 with Massa fighting of the championship (I know unlikely, but theoretically possible), would they do they same thing? Are they pragmatic, or is Alonso’s No.1 status written indelibaly in stone?

    5. The FIA should just let the driver/team pick the grid positions they want; fastest driver obviously getting first pick.

      1. That’d be interesting. IIRC Indy does something similar when it comes to determining garage allocations?

  2. Cue conspiracy theories about Ferrari orchestrating this to help Alonso

    1. It’s not a conspiracy theory. Apparently they didn’t even bother to actually change the gearbox, they simply broke the seal.

      1. Ye I see that now. It wasn’t entirely obvious earlier but at least there wont be any sort of controversy if Ferrari just blatantly do it

    2. Every single team would do this.

      1. Exactly. I’m a Ferrari fan and I actually do like Massa a lot. But he’s got to take on for the team

        1. Yes… I can agree with taking one for the team. But how many times has he taken one for the team now? Even back to ’07 giving up a home victory for your team mate (once again for the championship).

          I know it’s the sensible thing to do being Ferrari, but my heart just breaks for Felipe having to do it over and over again.

          1. LoreMipsumdOtmElor
            18th November 2012, 18:21

            One per year seems alright to me, considering he put himself in the position where he has no chance of winning the title. MSC/BAR is another story though, as he had to give up wins even though the championship was wide open at those points.

    1. I agree! Absolute genius move.

    2. Yes, genius, like a well-planned crash to bring in safety car.

      1. @alexde I have to admit that’s what I was reminded of when I first heard the rumours.

        1. Sabotage?! I’m not, but it is not good to be a Massa’s fan these days, even when he sweats hard to qualify in front of his team-mate. Sad for him and brazilians.

        2. Really horrid example considering organising a crash is not considered legal as it is like match fixing plus asking a driver to put his well-being on the line is also not allowed.

          The closest thing you can compare this to would be team orders where one driver lets his team mate past, which also happens to be legal.

        3. @keithcollantine – Dont know whats the fuss is about. Its just a loop hole in sporting regulation which Ferrari made use of. Now how is it different from Redbull finding a loop hole in Tech Regulations and making use of it? If what Ferrari did today is called as not in spirit then i would name double diffuser,DDRS,Blown Exhaust as also in same category

        4. Flexibility is pretty latin, but people in Emilia Romagna (where MAranello is) and Lombardia (where Monza is) are proud of their celtic heritage. And I guess planning skills

          They might have decided to let Felipe ahead of Fernando to have the option to choose sides by using the gearbox rule.

          People where discussing yesterday that there was NO way to choose sides…. Well there is one.

          You can revisit the Spanish TV interview to FA after qualifying…..

          “F, is there any specific reason for qualifying worse thatn Felipe?”

          “Yeee, no, no just he did better”

        5. This is not the right example fixing a crash is illegal whereas changing a gearbox is permitted and it cost 5 place penalty ,
          There is two reason behind this decision:
          1)getting Fernando ahead of massa ASAP(team order )
          2)getting the two Ferrari on the clean side of the grid which is an advantage in this case
          i don’t know why it is always dramatic when it comes to Ferrari ,In the last GP Red Bull decided to start Vettel from the pit lane to make some set up changes to his car (it is legal according to the regulation) & no one mentioned the conspiracy theory

          1. Completely agree with this. It’s a clever move by Ferrari and nothing more IMO. I like the fact they have been honest about it at least, instead of parking the (Red Bull) car on the last lap due to ‘a problem’.

          2. It wasn’t a conspiracy, because it didn’t affect Webbers race at all really, whereas Massa could have potentially been on the podium with all the pace he had today.

        6. @alexde @keithcollantine

          It reminds me more of the Olympic badminton, in which two teams played badly intentionally to try to get a better route to the final.

          Would the stewards have had scope to not hand out any grid drop penalty in the knowledge that the seal was broken intentionally or was the penalty automatic without scope for the stewards to not apply it?

          From Ferrari’s point of view I can understand why they did it and I guess it’s one of the quirks of the rules even if it isn’t within sporting spirit. I do wonder, however, how much more explosive it would have been if Red Bull had done it, given the comments when they started Vettel from the pit-lane in Abu Dhabi and made changes to the car!

      2. Got me thinking why Crashgate was illegal in the first place, do the rules state that you’re not allowed to crash on purpose?

        1. If I remember rightly Renault and Piquet were hauled up under Article 151c, which covers “bringing the sport into disrepute.” Pretty much a catch-all regulation for doing something the FIA takes a dim view of (it’s what McLaren were charged under for Spygate, among other things).

          1. Actually, it was just Renault who were hauled up, given that Piquet was (entirely wrongly) absolved of responsibility for his actions because he went to the FIA about it twelve months after the fact.

          2. Ok I suppose that makes sence

        2. The thinking was purposely endangering marshals lives I believe, and the intention of race-fixing, which I think is against the rules, or at least ‘brings the sport into disrepute’

          1. The thinking was purposely endangering marshals lives I believe

            Not forgetting shards of carbon fibre flying into the grandstand.

        3. Who’s to say that if Ferrari cannot produce evidence that Massa’s gearbox was indeed faulty in some way the stewards take a dim view and consider it an action that could bring the sport into disrepute?
          Personally I like the tactic but there’s a risk it could backfire…

    3. Very clever move. But I can’t help feeling like Ferrari are always a little shady in the way they handle their team orders. They never just come out and say what they’re really doing, they attempt to hide behind some bs excuse that no-one believes. Great move though – they need everything they can against the red bull.

  3. First time he out qualifies team mate for real and he is forced to start behind him

    1. Massa, the ferrari sacrificial pawn.

  4. what conspiracy theories ? it’s obvious what their doing, and not surprising

  5. Does anyone know how often this has been done solely to improve grid position in the past?

    1. No, remind me

      1. No, I’m actually asking!

  6. Now Red Bull to make Webber start from the pitlane and move Alonso back to the dirty side. :D

    1. lol good one

    2. nice one!!!

    3. THAT would be absolute genius :)

    4. @kingshark I wonder if Ferrari are leaving the official announcement until the last possible moment to prevent Red Bull from doing that?

      Or whether Red Bull can tell the FIA “if Massa has a gearbox change, we will change the gearbox on Webber’s car”? Seems no less legal.

      1. While Massa would not refuse this move by Ferrari, Webber won’t ever agree to this kind of move. Espescially given the situation of how strong Red Bull already are, Vettel is still 6 positions ahead of Alonso and 10 points ahead in championship. This is Alonso fighting to have a good chance at the championship while Vettel doesnt need such desperate measures.

        Moreover taking a grid penalty for Webber would move Alonso in to 6th, and if by the magical starts that Alonso specializes in, Alonso retains 6th Red Bull would not only have lost positions with Webber they would put Alonso to gain.

        1. This will destroy Massa, I predict, a la Hockenheim 2010.

        2. @rahul1810

          While Massa would not refuse this move by Ferrari, Webber won’t ever agree to this kind of move.

          Oh I absolutely agree – but they could always get around that by not asking him. “Sorry Mark, we dropped your gearbox.”

          1. Or they might “discover something’s wrong”

  7. That’s just ridiculous. I really want to hear their official excuse.

    1. @yobo01
      You know what they say: “Dust rises behind a good horse!”
      Your comment – the dust, Ferrari – the good horse. :)

    2. @yobo01 and people were complaing about the timing of Webber’s pitstop in Abu Dhabi! :D

    3. It’s not ridiculous; it’s just playing to the rules.
      (& I am not a Ferrari, or Alonso fan.)

      What is ridiculous is the huge disparity between the two sides of the grid.
      To be effectively penalised for qualifying in (say) second place rather than third is truly ridiculous.

    4. Agree! This move is just ridiculous. Pathetic!

  8. Ridiculous Ferrari. It amazes me how they always find a way not to respect the sports rules. Ferrari disgusts me

    1. lol. Red Bull and McLaren have disrespected the rules many a times but I bet it was one of those teams you’d be cool with it, right? Maybe you should watch bowls, everyone is friendly there and no one breaks the sporting rules.

      1. No, I dislike any team that does such things equally. I do like the intrigue it brings though, it’s a big part of why I love F1. Quite hypocritical of me, I know, but oh well.

    2. There’s nothing about this that’s against the rules (unless there’s something in the rulebook about hindering one team member in order to assist the other).

    3. The move is within the rules, and I can understand why they’re going out of their way to gain an advantage – Alonso’s WDC and Ferrari’s WCC 2nd place are both at stake – but I do agree that it leaves a bad taste in the mouth (still, I am in no mood to debate the “spirit of the rules”, a phrase which has already become a point of contention on the forums).

      1. I don’t know how anyone supports Ferrari. They always bend the rules and rarely get punished. Austria 02, Hockenheim 10, this, Monaco 06. They also broke the curfew in India.

        1. They are not bending any rules. They are following the rules perfectly.

          Want to blame someone? Blame the guys who wrote the rules.

        2. They got punished in Monaco 06. They didn’t break any rules in 02, the rules got changed after that and they didn’t break any rules now.

  9. I truly hope there is some *real* reason to change the gearbox and it is not just a trick to move Alonso one place ahead and to the clean side.
    If this is the case it would be shameful and will lose any remaining respect for Fernando.

    1. you did not need this excuse to lose respect for Fernando as U were / are just looking for chances to criticise

  10. Very wise, very unfair.
    I wonder if they asked Massa if he was ok with the strategy before deciding.

    1. @fixy
      Ferrari is just following Lotus’ example! Check the original quali position of Grosjean! :)
      But it’s always easier to spit at Ferrari… as they are the oldest and most succesful team in F1, so nothing surprising for me.

      1. Grosjean had the gearbox penalty before qualifying. Also Kimi lost out, he moved from 5th to 4th on the dirty side and lotus wouldn’t have wanted that.

        1. +1

          totally different situations. not even close.

    2. Its not unfair… everyone behind Massa moves up a spot and it does not affect those ahead. How is it unfair?

      1. It is unfair as Massa gets to start 5 positions behind where he qualified despite doing everything correctly and not having his gearbox broken.

        1. @fixy Massa’s job as an employee is to do what management decides is best for the team. Considering how the race finished, it definitely was best thing to do from the teams perspective. Massa put himself in this position by failing to keep ahead of Alonso in the points.

          1. @infy It is unfair. Whether he supported the decision or not is irrelevant. Ferrari altered a result pretty much like Renault in Singapore 2008, at least not putting other people in danger. Whether it was useful or not is another matter, and it was in the end, but with hindsight it’s easy to say so. Yesterday the choice left many questions: what if Massa, who started in the midfield, was caught in a crash? Ferrari could’ve lost 2nd place in the teams’ standings to McLaren.

      2. @infi – it’s unfair because it penalizes several other drivers who have nothing to do with Ferrari. Several drivers behind Massa who were on the clean side were moved to the dirty side, which totally screwed their chance of a good start.

  11. are teams allowed to inspect their cars when under parc ferme conditions ?

    1. @mnm101 Yes, within certain restrictions.

  12. As they’re not cheating, I don’t really have a problem with this. From a sporting point of view this is not right, but sometimes you’ve got to do, what you’ve got to do. I’ve never been big on this kind of sportsmanship myself. I don’t see how this is any worse than time wasting in football (legal time wasting that is).

    1. Agree. Red Bull have never been too concerned about the “spirit of the rules” with their flexing bits that somehow pass the load tests (also legal, btw), so I don’t see why we should bother with it now.

      Loopholes are there to be exploited in an environment like F1. Come next year I’m sure this will be illegal, but for now it’s absolutely fine.

      1. Isn’t that the thing though? Folks jump on RB for breaking the “spirit of the rules” when in fact all the teams do it, just that RBR does it better, usually. How many people jumped all over McLaren in 2010 for their F-duct? That hugely broke the spirit of the rules. Oh wait, it’s Mclaren, it’s okay…

    2. But this is different; this is deliberately hindering someone elses race to aid anothers for no apparent reason; as far as anyone knows, there isn’t anything wrong with Massas gearbox, so there is no actual reason to change it, other than to help Alonso.

  13. Haha, it’s not unfair, it’s a good tactic..

  14. It’s brilliant, but it’s also very very cheesy.

    Though this does show how brilliant Fernando has been this season. The race hasn’t even started and Alonso has already gained 2 positions! Greatest driver of our generation :)

    (boy, so many people talk about how unfair RB was to pit Webber to make it easier for Vettel to pass, and here’s Ferrari doing much worse to Massa lol)

  15. It’s no more ridiculous than team orders, but is exactly what LDM means when he talks about having ‘one rooster’ in a team. Why is anyone surprised? It makes perfect sense for them to do this.

    They’re not disrespecting the rules or being sneaky – they’re losing five places and gaining one. It’s a matter of priorities.

    It also illustrates how little Ferrari care about the WCC, as they are willing to surrender 2nd place to McLaren to give Alonso a better shot at the WDC.

    1. It also illustrates how little Ferrari care about the WCC, as they are willing to surrender 2nd place to McLaren to give Alonso a better shot at the WDC.

      Exactly my reaction. Sacrificing everything for WDC.

      1. Don’t Ferrari get extra money regardless of where they finish in he WCC? Red Bull already have it in the bag so they won’t get first. In terms of the prize money, I doubt there is little difference for Ferrari whether they finish 2nd or 3rd.

        1. Ferrari also get a bonus on top of the Constructor position. (either 17% of something or £17 million, I can’t remember which but I read it somewhere).

          1. Ferrari do get a bonus, but since this is regardless of finishing position (I think) the actual difference between 2nd or 3rd is the same size regardless of this fact so Ferrari are no less financially motivated than without the bonus.

    2. they’re losing five places

      Or not. Massa is a great starter and they know it. ;)
      Anyway, in words of Professor M: “Oh no, it’s happened again…”. Poor Felipe.

  16. May not be the most popular thing to do but its the logical thing to do.

    Everyone is expecting the left side of the grid to be really low grip & for everyone starting on that side to go backwards. Ferrari need Alonso to move forward at the start so they need him on the clean side.

    If I were running Ferrari I’d have likely done the same.

  17. wonder if they will find ,front wing tips flexing at high speed? RBR sure know how to play the rule book….the leading edge rolls over on hard braking …

  18. Is anyone surprised? Great strategy by Ferrari, a little unfair though. At least this means that theres a shot at this championship still being close going into Brazil, whereas if Alonso started on the dirty side it would probably be over. This is great for those that want a close championship, and awful for those wanting a Vettel championship.

    1. What about those just wanting a fair championship?

      1. No worries, just tell Redbull to stop cheating and to stop inhibiting Mark Webber’s progress to aid Sebastian’s, and we’ll all have a fair championship. How does that grab you?

  19. Because of such dirty games, that Ferrari are playing, they don’t win championships anymore.

    1. Strange? Dirty games seem to be helping Redbull to win championships though!!!

  20. this is bad karma.
    if there’s no problem with Massas’s car then it goes against the sporting rules and fair play.

    The championship gets decided today, you just watch.

    1. @paxjes

      Let’s hope so….

      This is exactly the reason why I dislike Alonso. He’s one of the best on the grid, if not the best, but he constantly has to do these controversial things to try and win the championship.

      This is why I think he doesn’t deserve the title anymore.

      1. @f1fannl constantly? As in every race? examples please…

  21. Great strategy? They learned well from Machiavelli…

    Come on Maldonado, take one for F1 and crash Alonso out on the first corner!

  22. Might seem like a sensible thing to do and not technically cheating but what about the other drivers who now switch to the poor side of the grid. Ferrari doing this has penalised them and I think both cars should be sent to the back of the grid. Was actually rooting for Alonso up to now but now hope Red Bull finish it off today.

    1. Don’t you think Red Bull is just as guilty of “unsportsmanlike conduct”?

  23. Massa will lose any remaining self-respect for this, if I was brazilian I would be ashamed of him. Too bad we have to wait yet another season to get rid of this puppet.

    1. Traverse Mark Senior (@)
      18th November 2012, 17:39

      I don’t think Massa had a choice, Domenicali has the final say.

    2. As a Brazilian I’m not going to say I’m ashamed of him, because I’ve never been a fan of his and nationalism has never been my thing, but deep inside I hoped Felipe would just stick his middle finger to Ferrari and quit already. He may not be the great driver he was before 2009, but he’s certainly greater than this kind of treatment. Stuff like this didn’t even happen between Schumacher and Barrichello (not that I can remember at least!).

    3. Pray tell, would you consider yourself a puppet if you employee asked you to do something along these lines? Would you really prefer being fired?

      1. If I had the money Massa has, of course.

  24. I think Ferrari should put this kind of ingenuity on their next car.

  25. It’s very unsportsmanlike. Brilliant, and exactly what we would all do in that position, but unsportsmanlike.

  26. This is what I like about Ferrari, they are always thinking. Going backwards to move forward is innovative thinking.
    Ferrari need a WDC, Mass winning the race is of no use if Alonso losses the championship.

  27. This is just Ferrari making use of a loop hole in the rules, just as Red Bull did in Abu Dhabi, starting Vettel from the pit lane so he could change to a more favourable set up for the race. Teams do this sort of thing all the time in different ways – F1 is all about exploiting the regulations, right from the first pencil stroke of the car design.

    1. This is affecting other drivers though.

      1. Which makes this decision even more outrageous.

      2. So? They run for their own interests.

        1. So Singapore 2008 was alright then

          1. As far as they don’t break any rules. I suppose crashing a driver on purpose is punished somewhere in the regulations.

          2. I suppose crashing a driver on purpose is punished somewhere in the regulations

            No I don’t think it is, any more than deliberately breaking a gearbox seal is punished in the regulations.

  28. All of this reminds me of the days of when they used to have the Sunday morning warm-up in F1, when particularly at dusty tracks like the Hungaroring, the drivers would deliberatly run thier cars down the ‘dirty’ side of the grid to clean it up before the start of the race proper.

    One wonders if they would re-introduce it to prevent this twisting of the rules Ferrari have done. And I’m sorry, but now I really hope Vettel wraps up the title today.

  29. Traverse Mark Senior (@)
    18th November 2012, 17:41

    It’s not against the rules, but it is against the spirit of the rules. It’s not exactly an honest or honorable thing to do.

  30. Well at least this Luca chap just admitted it. Now if Red Bull do this I won’t be happy, and Mark will be raging!!

  31. “Hello, Ferrari International Assistance? How can I help you?”

    1. But they’ve done nothing against the rules

      1. In fact they broke the rule about the gearbox change. And they have been punished with 5 places. That’s why I don’t understand all the fuss about it.

  32. It is a logical move. Just imagine: if they use Massa to knock some frontrunners down to move Alonso up at the start, it is even worse for the sport. (Sorry, I just remembered what happened to Alonso in Singapore 2008)

  33. Reminds me a bit of the badminton players at the Olympics. They didn’t want to win because it would have been a disadvantage – same here. just that those players were banned from the games…

    1. Ah sorry for reposting the same logics. ;-)
      Didn’t see your post.

  34. Cant believe everyone was complaining about sebs pit lane start… This is much worst.. he gains a place and starts from the cleaner side..atleast seb didnt gain but lost when starting from the pit lane at the start. This means that webber can crash into alonso or hold him which would be legal.. this is a joke

  35. How is this different from that badminton affair during Olympics. I will love to see them fail even more now I guess.

  36. It’s (legal) cheating and the reason why many of us would rather *anyone* won rather than Ferrari.

  37. What happens if alonso loses 2 pos from the cleaner side aswell by making a mistake. I wonder what the commentators will say

    1. That would be embarrassing. But in hindsight everything is 20/20

    2. Look, Alonso has nothing to lose now. he is behind in the championship and with a slower car.
      That Alonso loses 2 positions, yes, it can happen. Will he lose the championship today, yes, it can happen too.

      Atleast he can be happy he tried his hardest and then some before losing it. No shame in losing after knowing that you have given your very best.

  38. wouldn’t it be funny that Fernando’s gearbox fail in the race?.. oh the irony

  39. Guys, how amazing is this? Alonso is getting so ‘much’a’da’maxeemom’ out of the car that he’s ACTUALLY getting ~20% out of Massa’s car too! There is quite literally NO LIMIT to Fernando’s talent.

  40. If you dont like this you should be angry with FIA and Charlie Whiting its their job to make the rules just. Its a hole in the regulations just like there where a hole in Redbulls floor in Monaco.

  41. I’ve never seen Ferrari so desperate. It’s sad that they have to make up for their development failures with such tricks. On the other hand, you have to remember that they are not the only ones playing dirty, so It would be extremely hypocritical to condemned damn without remembering several dirty tricks of their main rival. This maneuver is not ethically ok, but it’s legal and does not pose any harm to anyone (for those who try to compare it to Singapore 2008). I find it to be in the same line as RBR’s ‘stealing’ front wing from Webber or telling Vettel to stop the car before the end of Italian GP just to “save the engine”. Unlike effectively breaking technical regulations on several occasions.

  42. Understand their thinking and I don’t blame them, it’s a good idea – but what will the American audience think of this? Really bad image to present in the first race back.

  43. Anyone else having a feeling that it would turn out that both sides are pretty much like on any other track regarding the difference in grip?

  44. Touche Ferrari, touche…

  45. Talk about taking one for the team…

  46. Ferrari behaved like gangsters on this one.
    Whatever it takes…

    1. Or should I say the Mafia :D

  47. If anything this is another reason why the 5 grid penalty for gearbox changes is a bit stupid…

  48. Please spare me the tears for Massa.
    Felipe and Rubens were, maybe, Championship quality drivers that turned whore and sold their racing spirit and souls to Ferrari and Michael Schumacher.
    Refusing to win a race or give up a position for the benefit of another driver, i.e. “for the team” is not true racing and it doesn’t befit a true racer.
    Neither deserves the respect of an honest racer.

  49. Smart move from Ferrari and respect to them for doing it.

  50. Whether fair or not, the fact remains that Ferrari were not as fast on Saturday as Red Bull. If they had been, then obviously they would not have reacted this way. The real winner in all of this is Vettel and Red Bull. Imagine the satisfaction they must have felt seeing their main rivals resort to such desperate tactics, and at such a crucial point in the season.
    Ofcourse it is hard of Felipe Massa. He has had without doubt the hardest of seasons of any of the top team drivers, ridiculed by the media and fans alike, Felipe has recently come back to the fore with some good performances. Then this happens! Saying that, this is not as bad as Hockenheim two years ago. Back then Massa was leading a grands prix, the season still had a long way to run and the championship was still far from being decided. Massa to me has always seemed vunerable once his head drops, once his confidence is gone. The events in Austin won’t help, but this is Formula One and every driver has to face this possibility potentially. They all have to be mentally tough to survive, so in that instance Massa is lucky to still be at Ferrari. His comments about being ‘the only driver to take this’ says everything. He knows he is not there on performance but more because he ‘takes’ knocks like Austin and Hockenheim without running to the press and causing a fuss. In essience, he is too much of a nice guy!
    As for Ferrari, dubious tactics have never been a problem for the Scuderia. Having said that, I doubt Christian Horner would have minded pulling a stroke like this if Vettel had been in Alonso’s grid position. As others have suggested, Red Bull might have gone about it a different way but the net result would be the same. Lets not forget that the Constructors Championship alone is worth $100 million just by itself. A sport this maybe, but its not conkers and the stakes are almost obscenely high.

Comments are closed.