Felipe Massa
Brasileño · 2002–2017
Felipe Massa lived through one of the cruellest episodes in the sport's history: he was world champion for about thirty seconds. The Brazilian from São Paulo had earned his status as Ferrari leader, first alongside Schumacher and then with Räikkönen, with notable qualifying speed and great performances at his beloved Interlagos.
In 2008 he delivered the best season of his life, with six wins, and reached the final race at home fighting for the title with Hamilton. He crossed the line winning and, for an instant, was world champion in front of his home crowd; but at the year's last corner Hamilton passed Glock and snatched the crown by a single point. His dignity in defeat moved the world.
In 2009 he suffered a horrific accident in Hungary when a spring struck his head, from which he recovered with enormous credit. He continued at Ferrari and then Williams until 2017, leaving the image of a fast, brave and deeply human driver.
What if Massa had another car?
We took his real attributes and put him in the best car of each era — in a real driver's seat, against the team-mate that car actually had. 20 full seasons in each.
| Car | Team-mate | Finish | Wins | Titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McLaren1988 | Alain Prost-94 pts | P2 | 2.1 | 0% |
| Williams1992 | Riccardo Patrese-1 pts | P2 | 4.2 | 30% |
| Ferrari2002 | Rubens Barrichello+21 pts | P1.3 | 8.9 | 75% |
| Red Bull2013 | Mark Webber+14 pts | P1.4 | 8.9 | 60% |
| Mercedes2016 | Lewis Hamilton-92 pts | P2 | 4.3 | 0% |
| Red Bull2023 | Sergio Perez+28 pts | P1.2 | 12.3 | 85% |
| Cadillac2026 · 11th on the grid | Valtteri Bottas+14 pts | P10.3 | 0 | 0% |
The only one who beats him is Alain Prost in the 1988 McLaren: 94 points clear over a full season.
Teams
Tags
Wins
11
Poles
16
Titles
0
Best year
2008
In-game overall
What would Felipe Massa have achieved with a different car or in a different era?