Ferrari to extend Massa contract into 2013
With Brazilian Massa's Ferrari contract set to expire, it is suggested that Kubica, 25, could be drafted in from Renault to be his friend Fernando Alonso's teammate in 2011 and beyond.
The speculation has gained even more pace given the Pole's impressive start to this season, but he said in China: "I don't think for any seconds or any minutes about next year.
"There were rumors about Ferrari last year, and now there are rumors again this year. So far, the rumors have only been rumors," added Kubica.
Some sections of the media have touted the possibility of a new three-year contract for 28-year-old Massa, who has been with Ferrari since 2006.
But Italian sources have suggested the Kubica rumors might be true, and when asked about his talks with Ferrari Massa said on Thursday: "I think there's really no rush for the moment.
"Even before my accident last year, some talks started to renew the contract, and those talks have started again.
"I'm really not in a rush to do that. Improving race by race and fighting for the championship is more on my mind," he added.
04/13/10 (GMM) Italian media sources have not fully backed reports that Felipe Massa is close to extending his contract with Ferrari for 2011 and beyond.
German and Brazilian reports last week suggested the 28-year-old, whose current contract with the Maranello based team is set to expire, is in talks to stay put for the next three seasons.
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| Felipe Massa |
But according to some well-placed Italian sources, Ferrari is not in such a hurry to finalize its 2011 driver lineup.
Indeed, when asked about the team's 2011 lineup, a Ferrari spokesman told Italy's Sportevai said the topic is "not currently a priority".
The sources also insist that rumors linking Robert Kubica with a move from Renault at the end of 2010 should not yet be dismissed — at least this early in the current season.
Finland's Turun Sanomat reports that while Kubica apparently signed a multi-season Renault contract late last year, the 24-year-old Pole may be able to switch to Ferrari as early as 2011, depending on various factors.
04/09/10 (GMM) A three-year contract extension is reportedly in the works for Ferrari's Felipe Massa.
The 28-year-old Brazilian's deal with the Italian team runs out this season, and it had been rumored that Robert Kubica could become Fernando Alonso's teammate in 2011.
But team boss Stefano Domenicali has told the latest edition of the German magazine Sport Bild that Ferrari wants "to build with Felipe into the future".
A subsequent report in Brazil's O Globo newspaper agrees that Massa, the current world championship leader, is "close to renewing his contract for three more seasons".
With a new deal through to the end of 2013, the future of the 2008 championship runner-up would be even more secure than double world champion Alonso's, whose contract is for a guaranteed three years beginning in 2010.
04/08/10 (GMM) Ferrari looks set to extend its contract with the Brazilian driver Felipe Massa.
Team newcomer Fernando Alonso has a long term agreement, but 28-year-old Massa's deal expires at the end of 2010.
There have been reports that the end of Massa's deal ties in with Robert Kubica's solely single-year Renault contract.
But team principal Stefano Domenicali suggested to Germany's Sport Bild magazine that Ferrari is happy with its existing lineup.
"We want to build with Felipe into the future," said the Italian.
Massa joined Ferrari as Michael Schumacher's teammate in 2006, going on to challenge Lewis Hamilton for the 2008 title before last year almost dying in an horrific Budapest qualifying crash.
Despite not yet winning a race this year, he is leading the drivers' world championship.
Domenicali added: "We have the feeling that he has developed in recent years into a driver as good as any other in the field."
He also said Ferrari has already begun work on its 2011 car.
"Next year the double diffusers are prohibited. The new car is an entirely new project," said Domenicali.