📍 ‘Crashgate: the scandal that has now lasted longer than some F1 careers.’
Felipe Massa’s quest to rewrite a sliver of Formula One history has resurfaced like an old V12 clearing its throat.
A scandal, a crash, a missed title by a single point — and now a courtroom drama with more intrigue than a Knightsbridge dinner party.
If you’ve ever wondered what happens when a lost championship refuses to stay lost.
(Read On)
The Full Story
◼︎ 2008:
Massa arrives at the Singapore Grand Prix with the poise of a man ready to be World Champion.
Nelson Piquet Jr. obliges Renault with a deliberate crash, inviting the Safety Car to ruin Ferrari’s evening.
Massa’s race collapses, the title slips away, and Hamilton takes the crown by a single, tormenting point.
◼︎ 2009–2022:
Crashgate is exposed; Renault is punished.
F1’s establishment insists the championship is immovable — like the RAC Club’s favourite leather armchair.
Massa carries on, dignified but quietly simmering.
◼︎ 2023:
Bernie Ecclestone casually suggests the FIA knew about the crash at the time but stayed silent to ‘protect the sport’.
Massa’s lawyers nearly sprain their wrists reaching for legal pads.
◼︎ 2024–2025:
A £64 million claim lands on the High Court’s desk, targeting F1, the FIA, and Ecclestone himself.
At October’s three-day hearing, the defendants attempted to have the case struck out as time-barred.
Mr Justice Jay reserves judgment — leaving the paddock, and several billionaires, hanging.
📍 ‘It’s remarkable: Ferrari couldn’t overturn a strategy blunder in real time, but they might overturn a championship 17 years later.’
