Massa protests his innocence after latest coming together
Last Updated: October 30, 2011 4:35pm
Massa: Another collision with Hamilton
Felipe Massa said Lewis Hamilton has developed a "fatal attraction" for him after they collided for the third time in four races at the Indian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The latest incident came on lap 24 at the Buddh International Circuit after Hamilton, in sixth place, gained ground on Massa when the Ferrari driver ran wide.
The McLaren driver then closed on his rival on the run to turn five but contact was made when he dived down the inside of Massa into the left-hander.
Massa's car spun as a result and although he retained fifth place, stewards subsequently decided that he had closed the door on Hamilton.
As a result, Massa was forced to serve a drive-through penalty and having lost two places, he fell further down the field before retiring when his car hit a raised kerb - the Brazilian having exited qualifying in similar fashion on Saturday.
Massa protested his innocence after the race. He said: "I can only say I do not share the opinion of the stewards who inflicted the punishment. I simply stayed on the ideal line, braking on the limit and staying on the part of the track that was rubbered in. What else could I do?
"It's the umpteenth time that Hamilton runs into me this year and it seems it's some sort of fatal attraction...in the past, I tried to talk to him but he did not seem to be interested in doing so."
Gesture
Hamilton, who pitted for a new front wing after the collision, eventually finished seventh after his car picked up a vibration. The 2008 world champion said he had tried to speak to Massa before the race as a conciliatory gesture.
The pair, who have also collided in Japan, Singapore and Monaco this season, stood next to each other during a tribute to Dan Wheldon and Marco Simoncelli, who both lost their lives recently.
"The contact with Felipe was just one of those things. I really didn't feel like I was at fault - it was a racing incident," Hamilton said.
"On the grid, just before the one minute's silence, he and I were standing next to each other and I put my arm around him and told him: 'Have a great race today.' I've still got great respect for him.
"I just wanted to squash whatever beef, or any anger he has towards me."
Asked as to Massa's response, Hamilton added: "He gave me a really small acknowledgement, which was to be expected. I wasn't expecting anything more really."
Massa was dismissive of Hamilton's attempt to bury the hatchet, however.
"He didn't try to do anything. He passed through, didn't even look at my face," he said.
"And after the one minute's silence he was on my side, and then he just said, 'Have a good race'. So this is trying to do what? Saying, 'Have a good race'? That's not talking."
Asked if their head to head had now developed into a feud, Massa said: "Maybe for him.
"In all these incidents, it's him who has touched my car. I didn't do anything wrong.
"I don't have anything against him. Nothing. Zero. And I will tell him what I am telling you now."
Asked as to why it was always Massa - the pair have now been involved in a total of six incidents this season - Hamilton added: "I've just been in some awkward situations where I've been further behind than I should really be due to mistakes.
"I should have been second on the grid (in India, but Hamilton was given a three-place penalty), and I wouldn't have been anywhere near Felipe if that had been the case.
"And in many other races like Singapore, Monaco, I should have been higher up (the grid), but I wasn't.
"But any attempt to get by, Felipe is very reluctant to let me. He makes his car as wide as he can be."
Magnetic
McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh believes the pair have to sort out their differences between themselves.
"Clearly Lewis and Felipe are magnetic," he said. "They're young drivers, but they're not that young. They're men and they have to figure it out for themselves.
"It would be nice if we had a situation where they're not drawn together magnetically on the circuit and we didn't have these incidents.
"I have discussed it with Ferrari, but I think it's got to come from them."
Ferrari team counterpart Stefano Domenicali, meanwhile, backed his driver over the latest incident.
"Our reasoning was that he had the line to get the corner. You may have a different opinion, but it is what I feel," he said.
Reacting to Whitmarsh's "magnetic" remark, Domenicali joked: "Who is the plus and who is the minus?"
He then added: "We can sit down together and play cards, but it will not solve the issue.
"One thing that is crucial in my view is we need to make sure there is a coherent approach from the stewards about things that happen on the track. There is a lot of discussion about that.
"We cannot avoid the fact there have been a lot of kisses between them on the track.
"But we cannot have these things being bigger than they are because they will be on the mind of the drivers, which is not good.
"It will be solved because it is not good for anyone, but it may take a little bit of time."
Credit: Sky Sports (www.skysports.com)
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