Massa: This could be a good track for us

With his team-mate in the FIA press conference, it fell to Felipe Massa to tackle the first press conference of the year to be held in the Scuderia Ferrari Media Hospitality, as the team motorhomes and trucks make their opening appearance of the season, now that we are back in Europe.

“This could be a good track for us and it’s one where we went well in the winter,” was Felipe’s opening remark. “It’s a track I like too and I also feel very positive about this race, thinking about our race pace, but I also hope we will be competitive in qualifying.”

That confidence stems in part from a package of updates that will be tried on the F138 in tomorrow’s free practice, but the Brazilian is realistic enough not to expect miracles. “We have new parts yes, and of course we are always hoping for a car with more downforce, that degrades it’s tyres less, but gives more grip and hopefully we end up with a car that helps the tyres work better, not just in qualifying but also in the race,” he said. “I don’t think the situation will change so much from what we have seen so far, although it’s true that many teams will have a lot of updates and we will see improvements. Maybe the teams who were suffering the most will suffer a bit less. But some of the front-runners could also move forward, because at the end of a three week break it’s logical that a team might come up with an update package that’s an improvement, but I don’t think it will produce a major change.”

Felipe is also looking forward to trying the reworked Hard Pirelli, as he was a critic of its previous incarnation seen so far this year. “The new tyre is a positive change, because the difference between the Hard and the Medium was that the Hard this year was always slower but also wore out more than the Medium,” he revealed. “Now I think the Hard should be a little bit quicker than before with slightly better wear than the Medium. But it’s hard to say until we’ve used it and also we need to see how the other teams get on with it.”

Lastly came a question from left field: how come Felipe had started to bring his little boy to the races? “I have always been a family man and I remember when I was karting, my parents were always with me and, as you know they come and watch me in Formula 1,” replied the proud father. “I feel happier when they are here and now that my son is three years old, I have started to bring him to more races, because he is beginning to understand more. He knows who all the drivers are and it’s fun to have him here and it’s surprising how much a three year old can understand. He’s got competition in the blood!”