Felipe Massa does not agree with suggestions that next season is a crucial one in his Ferrari career and argues that he has always defied the critics who have speculated he is close to the exit door at the team.
The Brazilian endured arguably his most disappointing campaign in 2010 since becoming a Ferrari driver nearly five years ago as he was conclusively outperformed by new team-mate Fernando Alonso and failed to win a race.
Nonetheless Massa – who returned to F1 competition at the start of the year after missing the final three months of the 2009 season with a head injury – was rewarded with a new two-year contract by the Maranello outfit in June despite speculation that his position had been under threat.
And while the announcement of this new deal has still done little to quell the seemingly never-ending speculation about the 29-year-old’s Ferrari future, Massa is relaxed about next year and says he has become used to the rumours in the press.
“I don’t think 2011 signifies a crucial year for me,” he said at Ferrari’s end-of-season World Finals event in Valencia over the weekend. ITV
“I remember that at the start of 2006, many people said I would only last a year at Ferrari and then I won races that season and went on to stay for a long time more.
“In 2008, there was a lot of pressure, especially at the start, but I managed to cross the line at the end of the final race as world champion [before Lewis Hamilton’s move on Timo Glock that sealed it for the Englishman].
“This year, there were many who said I would have a difficult year after my accident in Budapest - it turned out that way, but not for that reason.” ESPN F1
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