Arguments over the 2008 Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship have actually remained for years.
Now they are headed to court.
Previous chauffeur Felipe Massa has actually apparently submitted match versus Formula One Management (FOM), F1’s governing body the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile (FIA), and previous F1 President Bernie Ecclestone in the high court of London over the outcomes of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, and the Drivers’ title that season.
Massa has actually declared given that 2009 that he was the rightful champ that year, and not Lewis Hamilton, indicating an event that happened in the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. That race a huge minute for the sport, as it was not just the very first F1 race in Singapore, however likewise the first-ever nighttime F1 race.
The 2008 Singapore Grand Prix was the 15th of 18 races on the schedule that year, and the standings were tight getting in the race. Hamilton had simply a one-point lead over Massa in the Drivers’ standings ahead of the Singapore GP. With Massa certifying on pole, and Hamilton set to begin behind him in 2nd, Massa had a terrific chance to retake the lead in the standings. Massa had actually not been atop the table because the French Grand Prix, the 8th race of the season.
Massa ended up ending up 13th and outdoors of the points, due to a dreadful pitstop early in the race. He had actually developed a lead of over 3 seconds on Hamilton, however on Lap 14 Nelson Piquet Jr. of Renault lost control at Turn 17, and faced the wall.
The occurrence provided Massa an opportunity to come into the pits, however that is when catastrophe occurred:
The group launched him too early, and the Ferrari chauffeur roared out of the pits with the fueling line still connected. Massa stopped prior to going into the track, waiting on mechanics to race down pit lane to eliminate the hose pipe. He rejoined the grid at the back of the field, and a couple of laps later on would be offered a drive-through charge for a risky release.
He wound up ending up 13th, and outside the points. Piquet’s colleague Fernando Alonso won the Grand Prix.
In the weeks after the Singapore Grand Prix, there were rumblings about what occurred in the race itself. Kept in mind F1 reporter Joe Saward was amongst those, composing this at the time:
There were some skeptics (there constantly are) who reckoned that the group’s technique was to have Nelson crash right after Fernando had actually finished his stop and hence develop a scenario in which Fernando got a benefit over the remainder of the field. One can see this argument, however one likes to think that no group would ever be so desperate regarding have a motorist toss his cars and truck at a wall. In all possibility Piquet simply messed up – he has actually done that a lot this year.
Quick forward to the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix the following season.