The Crashgate scandal in Formula 1 was almost 15 years ago. But in the last few weeks, the Zoff has increased over the intentionally caused accident of Nelson Piquet jr. in Singapore, which probably cost Felipe Massa the world title, came back into focus. Now the Brazilian has set out his take on things.
“It was a stable order to help someone in our team. It wasn’t aimed at hurting Felipe Massa,” said the 37-year-old on the Pelas Pistas podcast. Nevertheless, his crash was a “mistake” at the time.
At the time, however, he felt compelled to take action so as not to jeopardize his future in the team, according to Piquet. “I dreamed of driving in Formula 1 for many more years. Then the Singapore Grand Prix came and I was psychologically cornered.”
Specifically, it was the then team boss Flavio Briatore who put him under a lot of pressure. That’s why Pique is now making serious allegations against the Italian.
“At that age, under this pressure, and then you have nobody by your side except a bully who always complains, always pushes you and always warns you: ‘This is your last chance’,” he complained about the situation.
Piquet crash costs Massa the Formula 1 title
In the game of the powerful team boss, he only felt like a “chess piece”. “His grotesque manner is not just like on TV, it’s much worse,” continued the son of world champion Nelson Piquet.
piquet jr intentionally hit the wall at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix on lap 14 to provoke a safety car phase. His Renault teammate Fernando Alonso was the only driver who had previously refueled. Alonso took advantage and drove to victory
Massa, on the other hand, fell back to 13th place due to an unfortunate strategy. This allowed his championship rival Lewis Hamilton, who finished third, to gain crucial points in the title fight.
After the Brazilian Grand Prix, the Brit ended the season just one point ahead of Massa.
Then-Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone recently indicated that he and the FIA knew about the breach before the end of the 2008 season. As a result, Massa announced last week that it would again examine legal steps.
