Last year, previously undisclosed details about the 2008 F1 World Championship emerged when former F1 chief Ecclestone disclosed that both he and then-FIA president Max Mosley were already aware of the truth behind the ‘Crashgate’ scandal during the Singapore Grand Prix that year.
Felipe Massa is suing over the 2008 F1 World Championship outcome
On that particular Sunday, Renault instructed Nelson Piquet Jr to intentionally crash in order to assist Fernando Alonso in the race. This strategic move was coupled with a mishandled pit stop that caused race leader Massa to lose his position, while his championship rival, Lewis Hamilton, held third place.
Hamilton ultimately clinched the title by a narrow margin of one point over Massa. This outcome could have been different if Formula 1 authorities had opted to cancel the Singapore Grand Prix and exclude its points from the championship standings.
Although the full details of Crashgate were initially believed to have emerged a year later, Bernie Ecclestone revealed in April, during an interview with F1-Insider, that he had been aware of the situation much earlier. According to Ecclestone, regulations warranted the cancellation of the Singapore race under such circumstances, thereby nullifying its impact on the World Championship standings. In this alternate scenario, Felipe Massa would have been crowned World Champion instead of Lewis Hamilton.
In response to Massa’s threat of legal action, Ecclestone initially denied giving the interview where he acknowledged prior knowledge of the situation, stating to Reuters, “I don’t remember giving the interview for sure.”
Despite Ecclestone’s initial denial, six months later, Massa proceeded with his legal action, asserting his claim as the rightful 2008 World Champion due to Crashgate. Massa officially announced his lawsuit on Monday, filing it in the United Kingdom’s High Court and seeking the World title along with a minimum of $82 million in damages.
Expressing his determination, Massa stated, “I always said I was going to fight until the end. Since the FIA and FOM decided not to do anything, we will seek to right this historical injustice in court. The matter is now for our lawyers, and they are fully authorized to do whatever is necessary so justice in sport is served.”
Despite being named in the lawsuit, Ecclestone supported Massa’s decision to pursue legal action. He told the Press Association, “If he had asked me, I would have said it was the complete right thing to do, to sue, and to let an English judge decide what is right and wrong.” Ecclestone acknowledged that he couldn’t predict the outcome but believed that having an English judge involved would be beneficial for Massa’s case.
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