F1Weekly Podcast # 1119
FELIPE MASSA AND THE 2008 CHAMPIONSHIP NOW IN COURT!…WHO KNEW AND, WHO DIDN’T KNOW? WILL LCH BE FORCED TO HAND OVER 2008 GOODIES?…HOW COULD PIASTRI DROP OFF SO BADLY? COMPARED TO LANDO NORRIS! AND, THIS WEEK’S NASIR HAMEED CORNER WE GET NOSTALGIC WITH A LOOK BACK TO 2016…GP2 ENGINE AAAHHHH….INTERVIEW…HARRY TINKNELL.
Felipe Massa’s Legal Case:
In 2023, Massa filed a lawsuit against the FIA (International Automobile Federation) and F1’s governing body, arguing that the manipulation of the 2008 race — which he believes cost him the championship — was not only unfair but should have been investigated more thoroughly at the time.
Key points in Massa’s case include:
Fraud and Misconduct: Massa alleges that the events surrounding the Singapore Grand Prix in 2008 were fraudulent and misrepresented to the public, and that this directly affected the outcome of the championship.
Potential Victory: He claims that, had the safety car period not occurred due to the orchestrated crash, he would have won the race and the title.
Timing: Massa’s case is built on the assertion that new evidence (like testimonies from insiders and other facts) has come to light, suggesting that the true extent of the manipulation wasn’t fully revealed or dealt with at the time.
Why Now?
Massa’s legal action comes years after the original events, with the key question being why the case is being pursued so late in the day. Some speculate that Massa might have been waiting for the right legal grounds or new evidence to surface, or simply for a change in the FIA’s leadership and its handling of such cases.
Current Status:
As of late 2023, the case was ongoing, with Massa and his legal team looking to secure compensation or possibly even a re-opening of the 2008 season’s results. Massa has hinted that he might be seeking justice more than just financial recompense.
The outcome of this case could have significant implications for F1 and how the sport handles cases of team manipulation, race fixing, or other forms of cheating. It also raises questions about accountability within F1 and the FIA regarding race conduct.
Massa’s lawsuit is likely to be a long and complex legal battle, given the intricacies of sports law and the FIA’s position in the motorsport world.
Celebrating 50 years of IMSA (photo: www.bobheathcote.com)
How sweep it is:
Porsche takes all three IMSA titles.
At the end of the day, you can’t talk about a history of racing without a history of winning. After a season of sweat, heat, trading paint and swapping drivers, Porsche Penske Motorsport has taken all three 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship titles: Drivers’, Teams’, and Manufacturers’.
No race—and no championship—is a given until the checkered flag drops. Yet after finding victory lane in the first four races of the season, there was definitely something in the air around Porsche Penske Motorsport. And with victories secured at Daytona, Sebring, Long Beach, and Monterey, the 963 was cementing its status as another legendary Porsche endurance racer.
A string of strong finishes followed, all of them in the face of intense competition—which is exactly how racing should be. Because it’s in the heat of the moment that you learn the lessons that make you better. All of them culminating at Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, where the whole Porsche Penske Motorsport crew took what they’d learned and made it official: they’re the champs.
JAK CRAWFORD CONFIRMED AS ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO THIRD DRIVER FOR 2026
AMRTC, Silverstone, 28 October 2025: The Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team has announced that Young Driver Jak Crawford will become the team’s Third Driver for the 2026 Formula One season. The role sees Jak act as the team’s reserve driver at all races next season.
The 20-year-old, who joined the team’s Young Driver Development Programme in 2024, has accumulated over 2,000km in Formula One machinery. Most recently, he made his Grand Prix weekend debut at the Mexico City Grand Prix, driving Lance Stroll’s AMR25 during FP1.
Throughout 2025, Jak has been a constant presence in the simulator at the AMR Technology Campus in Silverstone, providing valuable technical feedback that has supported both race operations with the AMR25 and development work on the 2026 challenger, the AMR26.
Jak is currently competing in his third Formula 2 season, where he sits second in the Drivers’ Championship. The series heads to Qatar next month for the first of the final two rounds.
Jak Crawford, Young Driver, Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team: “I’m incredibly proud to be confirmed as the Third Driver for 2026. It’s a huge moment in my journey with Aston Martin Aramco and a big motivation to keep learning and contributing. Over the past two seasons, I’ve learned so much from being in the Formula 1 environment, both at the factory and trackside. I’ll be doing everything I can to support the team and continue developing as a driver.”
Andy Cowell, CEO and Team Principal, Aston Martin Aramco Formula One™ Team: “It is great to see Jak progress to become our Third Driver for 2026. Over the past two years, he has shown his value as a key member of our driver squad and built up a valuable bank of experience and test mileage. Jak has impressed in the simulator, having completed regular sessions at the AMR Technology Campus to support our race operations and car development. Jak’s performances in Formula 2 have also been outstanding, and we are excited to continue supporting his growth as he takes on a bigger role.
HAAS MONTHLY UPDATE…
It’s been a while since we’ve caught up, and so much has happened over the past few races.
With only 4 events left in the 2025 season, let me bring you up to speed on the latest from the Team, starting with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Baku was a missed opportunity, unfortunately. It’s not our strongest track due to its long straights. However, we knew Ollie would be super fast, and he certainly was! He’s very good in Baku, last year he out-qualified Nico even after making a big mistake. He was very strong throughout the practice sessions.
Saturday was tricky with gusty wind conditions and he got caught out in Q2. It’s all about fine margins, and this time, we were on the wrong side of it.
It was a real shame because even with our speed, we couldn’t climb back into the top 10 from P15. So, that was disappointing, but again we showed our potential.
Singapore was all about executing and putting the weekend together. We’ve shown our speed consistently, but haven’t converted that speed to a top 10 finish. Esteban probably had his best Friday of the season and was very fast. Ollie started well, building up, considering he’s never raced at this street circuit.
What happened in qualifying with Esteban was very unfortunate, he had two issues (a seat belt in his first run and a yellow flag in his second run) and did not get out of Q1. If he had only had one of the two incidents, he would have been fine, but it was so unfortunate that he had two issues.
By contrast, Ollie delivered a great performance to qualify P9, less than 0.2 seconds off the fastest Ferrari in P6. That was pretty impressive.
We converted this good grid position to score two points in the race with Ollie which was a really good effort. We fought hard against Alonso for P8, but ultimately, we just came short. However, it was really pleasing to see that we put the weekend together as a team.
Following on from a good result in Singapore, we really wanted to build on that at our home race in Austin, bringing our final upgrade of the season. It’s always a tricky balance this year, looking ahead to the big challenge of 2026 preparation. We had a productive development period in the wind tunnel, so we decided to proceed because the midfield is so tight. It’s an evolution of what we brought to Silverstone and we stayed on plan with our schedule of 2025 versus 2026, so we’re happy with what we’ve seen so far.
It was amazing to see that the upgrade did what it was supposed to do. In two consecutive years, we proved that we can develop the car well. This gives lots of confidence to everyone in the team.
In the Sprint, we raced strongly despite having minimal time to fine-tune the car. Ollie very nearly scored a point (P8) if it wasn’t for the 10-second penalty he received on his move against Kimi Antonelli. Ollie had a very strong performance and qualified P8, less than 0.1 seconds off Oscar Piastri in P6, it was an amazing result. Esteban couldn’t quite match Ollie in high-speed sections in Q1, he was 0.2 seconds slower than Ollie, and that was enough to get knocked out in Q1 which was very disappointing.
In the race, we tried a different strategy for Esteban as he was starting from P17. Ultimately, we couldn’t get him into the top 10. Ollie raced very strongly, and he was looking good for a P8 finish. Yuki Tsunoda ahead, was a bit slower than us, so Ollie made a move while he had fresh tires.
Unfortunately, this didn’t work out, and he lost position to Nico Hulkenberg, dropping to P9. So, we all felt slightly deflated about this.
EVOLUTION OF AN ICON: WILLIAMS UNVEILS NEW NAME AND LOGO FOR 2026
tlassian Williams Racing will race next year under a new identity that connects the team’s glorious legacy to its bold and ambitious future.
From January we will become Atlassian Williams F1 Team – a name reflecting our sole purpose to race and win in the top echelon of motorsport.
And our existing ‘W’ logo will be replaced by a 21st century reimagining of Frank Williams’ famous ‘Forward W’, first introduced in our founding year of 1977 and featured on every one of our nine Constructors’ World Championship-winning cars.
It is the latest evolution for an iconic Formula 1 team that is one of the top three most-successful in the sport’s history – and has set a clear ambition to be a powerhouse again in this modern era of F1.
Throughout almost 50 years in F1 Williams has forged a legacy built on independence, innovation and determination to win, attracting tens of millions of dedicated fans around the world.
Now under the ownership of Dorilton Capital, with James Vowles as Team Principal and world-class drivers in Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon, the team is driven to usher in a new era of success with the same passion and values at its heart as F1 continues to expand in global popularity.
This transformation is already gathering pace, with the team sitting fifth in the 2025 Constructors’ Championship with 111 points – more than the past seven seasons combined. The team recently secured its first Grand Prix podium since 2021 in Baku, and first-ever Sprint podium in Austin.
James Vowles, Team Principal, Atlassian Williams Racing: “I am proud that from next year we will be known as Atlassian Williams F1 Team and carry a logo on our car inspired by our founder Sir Frank Williams and deeply connected with our decades of success.
“As a team we are inspired by our past but excited about our future, and committed to writing a new Championship-winning chapter in Williams’ history.
“This evolved team identity reflects who we are, where we are going, and reintroduces our title-winning legacy to a growing F1 audience that was not following the sport when we were last dominant.”
Marcus Prosser, Marketing Director, Atlassian Williams Racing: “With this new name and logo our rich history is being reimagined for the future.
“It is inspired by our past, confident about our future, and clear about our identity – a Championship-winning Formula 1 team with a burning drive to win again.
“We hope our existing and loyal fans will love it. But we also hope it will connect a new generation to our incredible legacy, building the community of Williams fans that will carry us to our next victory.”
RED BULL BRAZIL GRAND PRIX RACE PREVIEW…
MAX…
“Brazil is a special place for me, not only because of the incredible races and the great moments that we have had there but also because my family in laws are also from Brazil. It can rain heavily there so you can have quite crazy races, especially last year’s race where we won after qualifying 17th, which was an emotional win and an important moment in the Championship. I will be wearing my special Brazil helmet for this race. It is a place that has a lot of history and a great legacy but also holds so many great memories for me. I went for traditional colours on the helmet that really stand out, I think the design looks really cool and I’m excited to wear it on track. The fans are super passionate and I always love racing at such an old school track. Seeing that atmosphere and being part of it is incredible.”
YUKI…
“Brazil is always an exciting race, with weather that can throw up the unexpected. It looks like the rain could play a part in our weekend there again but everyone will be in the same position and it’s about how we maximise the time on track and handle it as a Team. The Sprint format always holds its own challenges but add some rain in there and it could be a crazy weekend! The benefit for me is that across the last two weekends the car has felt great when it has come to race pace, I’m lapping very close to Max and I feel confident in the car and the updates we have made. If I can be consistent across the two qualifying sessions then we should put ourselves in a strong position to be up there in the Sprint and the race. This weekend is about helping boost our Constructors points and being able to support Max where I can.”