Brazil will be Massa’s 100th F1 race for Ferrari

Felipe Massa

The Brazilian Grand Prix will be especially significant for Scuderia Ferrari driver Felipe Massa and not just because of the obvious correlation that it is his home race. When he makes the short trip from home to the Interlagos circuit on the outskirts of Sao Paolo this weekend, he will be preparing to tackle his 153rd Grand Prix and more significantly his “century" of race starts in the red race suit of the Prancing Horse.

“This will be a very important weekend for me, as it will also mark the end of the tenth year since I first raced in Formula 1, although not ten years of competition, as I was a Ferrari test driver in 2003," says the Paulista.

“Fortunately, I am still young and there is more to come, but ten years is still a landmark in an F1 driver’s career. Then there are my six years racing for the Scuderia, competing in one hundred Grands Prix for the team, which makes me one of the drivers who has raced the most for this team. Therefore, putting it all together, ten years of Formula 1, one hundred races with Ferrari and all of it at home in Brazil, makes this something really special for me. It will be an emotional time and what I would like to add to it all would be a good result come Sunday afternoon."

“Century man" Massa sums it up this coming weekend succinctly: “This year has not gone so well, but we have tackled it with our usual fighting spirit and that is what we will take forward to next year, when we hope to have a very different sort of championship to this one just ending. The intention is to be competitive right from the start, fighting for the win in every race. This has not been a fantastic season for me, but neither has it been for the team. So as a driver, I have a very strong desire which I share with the whole team to give one hundred percent to improve for next year."