Felipe Massa
Brazilian · 2002–2017
Photo: Felipe_Massa_-_2011_Canadian_Grand_Prix.jpg: Mark McArdle derivative work: F1fans (talk) · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Massa in numbers
1,167 official points · best championship finish: 2nd in 2008
0Drivers’ titles
none
2Constructors’ titles
2007, 2008
24th of 789 all time
4.1% of races
5.9% of races
15.2% of races
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
0Drivers’ titles
none
2Constructors’ titles
2007, 2008
of 2 in the career
7.9% of races with Ferrari
10.8% of races with Ferrari
25.9% of races with Ferrari
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
1.3% of races with Williams
6.4% of races with Williams
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.
Ver en españolRating by season
- First season
- 77 2002
- Peak
- 82 2008
- 2017
- 75 Williams
15 seasons in the database, from 2002 to 2017. Our own rating, from 50 to 99.
Teams
Tags
Best year
2008
What would Felipe Massa have achieved with a different car or in a different era?
Hypotheses featuring Felipe Massa
Related drivers
His team-mates
8 team-mates across 15 seasons. When both finished the race, Massa was ahead in 69 of 194; on the grid he started ahead in 105 of 268.
| Year | Team-mate | In the race | On the grid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Nick HeidfeldSauber · 16 races | 4-4 | 5-11 |
| 2004 | Giancarlo FisichellaSauber · 18 races | 3-10 | 7-11 |
| 2005 | Jacques VilleneuveSauber · 19 races | 9-3 | 12-7 |
| 2006 | Michael SchumacherFerrari · 18 races | 3-11 | 5-13 |
| 2007 | Kimi RäikkönenFerrari · 17 races | 4-9 | 9-8 |
| 2008 | Kimi RäikkönenFerrari · 18 races | 8-3 | 12-6 |
| 2009 | Kimi RäikkönenFerrari · 10 races | 3-2 | 4-5 |
| 2010 | Fernando AlonsoFerrari · 19 races | 3-13 | 4-15 |
| 2011 | Fernando AlonsoFerrari · 19 races | 2-13 | 4-15 |
| 2012 | Fernando AlonsoFerrari · 20 races | 0-17 | 2-18 |
| 2013 | Fernando AlonsoFerrari · 19 races | 1-15 | 8-11 |
| 2014 | Valtteri BottasWilliams · 19 races | 8-6 | 6-13 |
| 2015 | Valtteri BottasWilliams · 19 races | 6-7 | 7-11 |
| 2016 | Valtteri BottasWilliams · 21 races | 7-8 | 4-16 |
| 2017 | Lance StrollWilliams · 19 races | 8-4 | 16-3 |
The first number is always Massa's. A team-mate is whoever started the same race for the same team. "In the race" only counts races both finished, because a retirement says nothing about who was quicker. "On the grid" is the starting position, with penalties already applied.
Compare Massa with another driver
Titles, wins, poles and podiums side by side, against any of the 789 drivers in history.
Keep reading
Where Felipe Massa comes up in what we have measured, with our own numbers.
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