Ex-F1 bosses accused of “conspiring” to cover ...

Felipe Massa’s authorized counsel has asserted that Method 1’s management was concerned in a “deliberate concealment” of Nelson Piquet Jr’s 2008 Singapore Grand Prix crash, as a part of Massa’s case disputing that yr’s title.

Massa had filed a lawsuit in opposition to the FIA, Method One Administration (FOM), and Bernie Ecclestone in search of damages for the result of the 2008 championship, which is now being tabled at a pre-trial listening to on the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

The Brazilian is in search of £64million in damages from the three events.

An interview with former F1 supremo Ecclestone had been launched on F1-Insider in 2023, the place Ecclestone had apparently instructed that he and former FIA president Max Mosley knew sufficient in regards to the Crashgate plot within the 2008 Singapore GP to doubtlessly expunge the race from the official standings – however selected to keep away from doubtlessly drawing consideration to a scandal.

Ecclestone has subsequently acknowledged that he doesn’t bear in mind giving the interview, a defence mounted by his lawyer David Quest KC.

Regardless, Massa had subsequently seen this interview and selected to mount a authorized problem to hunt damages. Having led that yr’s Singapore race, Massa left a pitstop along with his gasoline hose caught to his automobile – he completed the race in thirteenth place in consequence.

Within the race, Piquet was instructed to crash on the 14th lap, after Renault team-mate Fernando Alonso had made a pitstop. Throughout this period, the pitlane tended to stay shut through the preliminary utility of a security automobile; in consequence, Alonso in the end received the primary F1 race in Singapore. Crucially, Massa’s title rival Lewis Hamilton completed in third – and in that yr’s Brazil finale, beat Massa to the title by one level.

Nick De Marco KC, Massa’s lawyer, acknowledged that these in control of F1 on the time had been concerned in “deliberate concealment” of the occasions in Singapore to guard their very own pursuits.

“The primary level is that it’s no exaggeration to say the deliberate crash was one of the crucial severe incidents of sport manipulation in world sport, not solely as a result of it was blatant try and intervene within the race, however the deliberate act threatened the lifetime of spectators and the motive force himself,” mentioned De Marco.

“What then occurs is the deliberate concealment of the conspiracy to have a crash, the deliberate concealment by these with accountability for safeguarding the integrity of the game, intentionally conspiring collectively to cowl up one of the crucial severe scandals within the historical past of sport.”

Quest had countered in court docket that “Mr Massa’s poor efficiency within the race was not associated to the crash, and neither was Lewis Hamilton’s robust efficiency. Neither of them had been conscious of Renault’s ploy.”

FOM’s counsellor Anneliese Day KC has contended that Massa’s failed bid to turn into champion was merely a matter of Hamilton having “outperformed” Massa over the season – and that Massa had “the misfortune” to be in competitors with the seven-time champion.

“This litigation is not going to lead to Mr Massa getting the prize he desires, and the one ‘winners’ out of an extra 12 to 18 months of litigation would be the legal professionals,” learn Day’s assertion. “The easy truth is that over the course of each the Singapore Grand Prix and throughout the 2008 season, Mr Hamilton outperformed Mr Massa (and everybody else).

“There may be nothing uncommon or unfair about that: Mr Massa merely had the misfortune to be up in opposition to one of many biggest drivers the game has ever seen, and neither he nor anybody else might beat Mr Hamilton over the course of the season.”

The pre-trial will conclude on Friday, after which it is going to be determined if the case warrants a full trial, or might be thrown out.

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– The Motorsport.com Crew