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A race driver with one of the best teams in Formula One for eight seasons, almost a World Champion, a scary injury and a dutiful teammate. That’s Felipe Massa’s Formula One career in a nutshell.
The news is out and Massa will be bidding goodbye to the prancing horse after a long eight year stint. He hung on to his seat for quite a while despite some decent performances but the fact remains that he showed his class only in patches. While Ferrari at times didn’t give him the fastest car there were occasions when he was asked to move over and allow his long time teammate Fernando Alonso to pass. He has 11 race wins and 36 podiums in his Formula One career.
As his association with the Maranello team comes to a close at the end of the season, here are a few options that he might want to explore for the 2014 season.
Give and take
The very first option that comes to mind is Lotus-Renault. A switch to the vacant seat fits the bill. With limited options available, Lotus could be Massa’s best option while his former teammate at Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen gets ready for another stint with the Reds. Lotus too wouldn’t mind another ex-Ferrari driver driving for them. After-all, they were the ones who brought Raikkonen back into Formula One.
But there are a lot of ifs linked to this move. Massa might have to take a significant pay cut compared to what he got at Ferrari. With Kimi having issues getting his pay on time, Massa could end up in a similar fix. Or else, he might have to get a sponsor with bags full of money to keep himself afloat over financial issues. Lotus might be looking at Nico Hulkenberg as Raikkonen’s replacement as he has driven quite well considering his skills, the limited options at Sauber-Ferrari and at a comparatively lesser pay than Massa. That is, of course, unless Romain Grosjean moves out and Lotus hire both Massa and Hulkenberg.
Force India or Mclaren?
Massa has the two British teams as options as well. Force India have yet to confirm Adrian Sutil and Jenson Button is yet to sign a new deal with Mclaren-Mercedes. With the new regulations coming into place, these two teams might just spring a surprise in 2014. And who knows, it may eventually help Massa go after his cherished dream.
The back-markers
Massa has a few options to choose from the back-markers. While Red Bull owned Scuderia Toro Rosso looks difficult, he could head back to Sauber-Ferrari, his ex-employer and the one who handed him the key to Formula One. Williams could also be another option. But the fact remains they aren’t the same team that they once used to be and have clearly struggled, with just one point to show this season. Marussia-Cosworth and Caterham-Renault also have the same story of struggle. And they obviously won’t be able to give Massa a fat paycheck like Ferrari.
Also, Massa in his message confirming his move out of Ferrari said “I want to find a team that could give me a competitive car to win races and challenge for the Championship which remains my greatest objective”. With that in mind, he is unlikely to choose a back-marker unless he runs out of better options and is desperate for a drive.
Felipe Massa, when he was with Sauber in 2002
Test/Reserve Driver
Massa could look to get back into the shoes as a test/reserve driver, being an ex- test driver for Ferrari himself before donning the race driver suit. But that would probably mean undoing his 11 years in Formula One and starting from scratch. Hence, he wouldn’t want to take that route again. But then again, he might if no other option seems viable and he would want to stay in Formula One.
Goodbye to Formula One
One of the last resorts, in case no options are available to Massa, would be to move out Formula One like some of the other drivers in the past to a different Motorsport Championship. Mark Webber will be moving to Le Mans 24 Hours in 2014, Raikkonen, drove in NASCAR and the World Rally Championship, Mika Hakkinen drove in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) and fellow Brazilian Rubens Barrichello drove in the Indy Car series. But the decision will be a tough one for Massa who has a couple of years (if not more) left in him in as a race driver.
It will be very interesting to see how things shape up for the Brazilian given his experience in Formula One. One can only hope he does get a good drive; in Formula One or elsewhere, only time would tell.
