by
Bryn
Lennon/Getty
Images)
Mr
Massa
argues
that,
but
for
the
FIA’s
handling
of
the
crash,
he
would
have
won
the
drivers’
championship.
These
declarations
treat
the
court
as
a
sports
‘debating
club’,
asking
it
to
embark
upon
a
counterfactual
exercise
concerning
the
‘refereeing’
of
a
sporting
event
which
took
place
nearly
17
years
ago.
—
David
Quest
KC,
attorney
for
former
F1
head
Bernie
Ecclestone,
in
a
statement
concerning
the
lawsuit
filed
by
former
Ferrari
driver
Felipe
Massa.
Massa
finished
second
in
the
2008
F1
championship,
one
point
behind
McLaren
driver
Lewis
Hamilton.
Massa’s
lawsuit
alleges
F1
failed
to
properly
handle
“Crashgate”
during
the
2008
season,
wherein
rival
constructor
Renault
ordered
their
driver
Nelson
Piquet
Jr.
to
crash
his
car
during
the
Singapore
Grand
Prix
in
order
to
stage
a
win
for
his
teammate
Fernando
Alonso,
thereby
leading
to
a
safety
car,
compromising
his
strategy
and
costing
Massa
the
world
championship.
Quest
continued,
noting,
Massa’s
claim
would
“deprive
Mr
Hamilton
of
his
2008
title”
despite
Hamilton
being
“equally
exposed
to
the
crash.”
Anneliese
Day
KC,
for
Formula
One
Management,
wrote,
“In
truth,
it
was
not
the
deployment
of
the
safety
car
which
changed
the
course
of
history
for
Mr
Massa,
but
rather
a
series
of
subsequent
racing
errors
by
him
and
his
team
during
the
remaining
47
laps
of
the
race.”
John
Mehrzad
KC,
attorney
for
the
FIA,
agreed,
saying
Massa’s
claim
is
as
“torturous
as
it
is
overly
ambitious”
and
“conspicuously
overlooks
a
catalogue
of
his
own
errors.”
Those
“errors”
famously
include
Massa
driving
away
from
a
pit
stop
prematurely
with
the
fuel
hose
still
attaching
and
knocking
down
a
member
of
his
pit
crew.
Ecclestone,
the
FIA
and
Formula
One
Management
are
seeking
dismissal
of
the
lawsuit.