Massa is Idiot

[Venom]

Please answer this difficult poll.

[TeamPrincipal]

What a surprise Yes is winning!

[Sawtooth-spike]

he is just too hot headed.

[jaho101]

I think he just took a huge risk because he knew that if he got stuck behind Hamilton for too long he'd never catch Alonso, thus lose the race. Wether he should have done it that way or not is up to debate, but I see the logic behind it. It was just poorly executed.

[manchild]

He is fast out of traffic but not much of a racer. He could learn a lot from Hamilton.

[onon]

he coudnt capitalize on his pole position, tricked by hamilton, trails behind heidfield, "mass"-a errors.

[Iciano]

Impatience got the better of him.
He most likely, and should feel that he has to prove himself to Ferrari and got way over-eager. I hope he can come back from this and eliminate the mistakes. He came a long way last year, it would be a shame to undo all that work.

[RH1300S]

Not an idiot at all..........in fact, I'd say a pretty handy driver

[Ciro Pabón]

Idiots are those who blame "their" drivers when they lose. Thank heaven I don't have to apologize in advance, because you are not like them.

They are idiots for two main reasons: first, because all the happiness of winning is lost if you expect wins all the time, and second, because they are like the hideous partner that jumps on you when you need his asistance.

I'm too happy to dig into this.

I think there were too many good races yesterday, starting by Kimi or the marvelous Nick Heidfeld, that, on a "proper car", is finally showing why he could win over Michael Schumacher back in their karting days, followed by Fisichella and Trulli who didn't were that far, and continuing with Sato and Speed (both ahead of Schumacher!), ending with Kovalainen. Not bad for Webber or Wurz, either, who weren't lapped.

So, all my support to Felipinho. He did all he could, given the car he had... Well, seriously, Hamilton tricked him into braking too late (that was a nice karter trick, btw). Even Kimi "The Ray" Räikkönen had a hard time trying to overtake Felipe. Forza, campeao!

Instead of blaming those that lost (21 of them) you could praise the lucky McLaren team, as a good loser should. I will next race, if Ferrari, as seem probable, get their drivers again on the podium. Today, all I see are spanish flags...

[checkered]

I wouldn't call Felipe

an idiot. He is a bit of a rarity in F1 nowadays, since generally drivers are expected to be nearly "complete packages" the first time they go racing. This doesn't favor late bloomers (who, given a chance, can pull off memorable seasons and races after given time for their learning curve to take off), under which category Massa could perhaps be placed. At the end of the last season I was almost ready to underwrite the claim that he had finally arrived. This perception wasn't enforced in Malaysia.

His start and subsequent off messed up Ferrari's game plans pretty much beyond repair. The tactics were defined by damage control way before the weekend started, so beyond that ... Even after the mishaps he should've outpaced Kimi, who came within a hair's breadth of admitting his engine actually was compromised to a significant degree (i.e. lacking power to overtake). I can see Todt making propability calculations based on the points situation already. Behind the wheel Hamilton is no spring chicken and that was obvious in his GP2 days already; Massa should've known better.

This was no place to attempt opportunistic overtaking, this was the real deal and for that you need to be in control. Firmly. ("The victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory." - Sun Tzu) Felipe should've had his alarm bells ringing, back down and get on top of the situation once he realized Lewis forced moves on him. If he didn't perceive this, then he has "room to improve" as a driver, to put it kindly.

On the plus side, it looks like the season will be action packed. If only there were a couple of protagonists more than the usual suspects.

[checkered]

On the subject of

Hamilton, still, I'm growing a bit worried about him. Sure, newspapers and sports shows will propably be filled with "resurrection" stories, referring to Macca and Alonso cruising to an Easter victory (I'm usually a bit uncomfortable when sports journalists start getting all wordy and creative, as happens from time to time in their quest for an audience, so much so that I find myself reflecting their style before the fact!). All this is fine, as long as Lewis doesn't end up being the "sacrificial lamb" of this feast (There I go again!).

There was much ado and hand wringing about Hamilton being up against a challenge too big before the season had begun in earnest (Part of it intentional, but largely a parroting chorus of doomsayer wannabes). Now he is universally praised, but with subordinate clauses betraying an overwhelming conviction that somehow his "time" will come next season, or the one after that, or ... the problem with that rationale is, simply put, that no F1 team can promise such a thing. Fortunes change quickly in F1.

There are inklings in the general arrangement of McLaren race tactics that the team plays the propabilities game. But how will this reflect on Hamilton if he indeed is ready to challenge for the WDC right now, however unlikely that'd be for a rookie? And how will it reflect on him, if this turns out to be his one and only chance for seasons to come?

McLaren, if anything, has a soul of stories. Lewis's rise, in may ways is a culmination of a string of stories in a compilation gathered under the editorial supervision of Ron Dennis, the unlikeliest story of them all. And that's why I have a problem with his story suddenly conforming to propabilities. I hope the "writers, storyboard artists, lighting technicians and directors" of the team can appreciate this too. No driver in my memory, not even Schumacher, has been so elementally, fundamentally integrated in the fortunes of one team.

This carries a huge responsibility, personally and towards the sport in general. His very presence demands that every chance is given to him so that he may fail or succeed in his own right. Either way, those options are better than to stifle him by the failings in the imaginations of others.

This is one story is quickly growing to one that has the potential to "make or break" F1 for me for a long while to come. On a dramatic, personal, human level.

[G-Rock]

I wouldn't call Massa an idiot but more a "mid pack quality driver in a Ferrari, that's all."

I made a wager with someone (you know who you are) a few months back that Massa would show his true lack of quality alongside KR. He is a good second driver but no world champion material. I believe the wager was to eat the other's shorts. The year isn't over yet but are you still in? I can mail you them in 3 days when the seasons over or Felipe is officially designated 2nd driver.

Massa's just not up to par and it won't be long before we start seeing him support Kimi in the next few races. Another Brazilian serf to a western European driver. Brazil needs another Senna and it won't get one for a while it looks like.

Massa can either get stronger from Malaysia's "malaise" or just fall into obscurity and have to make up excuses of why he is helping Kimi for the rest of the year.

Please do not answer that poll. It's beneath (most) of us!

[Scuderia_Russ]

Great thread.

[bizadfar]

1) His start was horrible. At least do a 2002 style Schumacher. This effectively screwed/sealed the race.
2) He let Alonso outbrake him so easy.... that almost KR hit him and that let Hamilton easily through.
3) Turn 2, all he had to do was go wide and force Hamilton off or to hesitate. But he probably has tunnel vision
4) He just proved again today how inconsistent he is in traffic. You all saw vs Hamilton what dumb move he did. And the next lap he made the same dumb mistake but even worse effect. Who can be more erratic? He had the car, the raw pace but he didn't use it all. Behind Heidfield the remainder of the race with all those lockups.

That "trick" is by far not a karting trick lol. They/I do it in every motorsport. ANd it should NOT be a trick to any F1 driver(except maybe Alex Yoong?) Just F1 has too many pussies. "oh im about .5-1.5sec slower than u... here... pass me"

[jddh1]

Massa made a mistake with his start by allowing Alonso to take the inside, knowing that it was a long right hander. But then he tried really hard to prove himself to Ferrari and outdid himself. I could guarantee that with that outing in Turn 4 there, he lost something from the underbody's efficiency.