Felipe Massa’s court case to challenge the result of the 2008 Formula 1 World Championship, which he claims he lost through the ‘Crashgate’ scandal, began in London this week.
The Brazilian was trailing the Drivers’ Championship by one point from Lewis Hamilton going into the infamous inaugural Singapore Grand Prix.
Massa was leading the race when Nelson Piquet Jr crashed, which brought out the Safety Car, giving drivers an opportunity to pit.
Leaving his pit box with the fuel hose still attached, Massa’s car caught fire, and whilst able to rejoin, his race was ruined, costing him a points-scoring position.
It proved to be a pivotal ‘sliding doors’ moment in the championship, with Hamilton taking a podium at the Marina Bay Circuit.
Massa and Hamilton were engaged in a titanic battle which came down to the final lap in Brazil, with Hamilton taking the title after Massa had crossed the line first.
The crux of Massa’s case is two-fold, with the now known fact that Piquet Jr was ordered to intentionally crash to enable Renault team-mate Fernando Alonso to win.
The other part of the case relates to an interview given by former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone to German publication F1-Insider.
In it, Ecclestone revealed that he and then-FIA president Max Mosley were aware of the Renault order before it was public knowledge.
However, the pair decided to opt against escalating the incident further out of fear of harming F1’s reputation and image.
Ecclestone, who turned 95 on Tuesday, will be called to give evidence in the case, and has since claimed that his quotes from the interview were mistranslated.
Massa is seeking £64 million in damages, and after initial hearings on Tuesday, judge Sir Robert Jay hears from both parties.
In the circumstance where the case is deemed unnecessary for a full hearing, then Massa’s challenge could well be finished.
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