Felipe Massa frustrated after minor Q3 mistake

Ferrari’s Felipe Massa was frustrated after qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix, even though the Brazilian driver qualified 6th for race. Regardless of Massa’s frustration, this was his most competitive qualifying session of year so far. With this the case, it seems Felipe Massa has finally left his gremlins behind after a tricky start to the season.

With Felipe Massa’s team-mate Fernando Alonso already a race winner in 2012, the 31-year-old has been playing catch-up since day one of the season. After suffering a disastrous opening few races at the start of the season, question marks quickly arose regarding Massa’s future with Ferrari. With the likes of Sergio Perez, Mark Webber and Paul di Resta rumored at possibly replacing Massa, the Brazilian driver has been under severe amounts of pressure to perform in 2012.

However, it seems the pressure applied by the media has payed off for Ferrari, as Felipe Massa has shown visible improvements over the last few weeks. From battling to progress through to Q2 to battling within Q3, Felipe Massa has come on leaps and bounds since the Australian Grand Prix in March.

“I am pleased with the progress made this weekend: starting from sixth is a positive result.” Explained Felipe Massa, “However, I can’t be happy with my last lap in Q3: in the second sector, I lost the rear end and that cost me a few tenths and that quite probably meant a few places on the grid. I’m very disappointed because I had the potential to do better than this sixth place. Tomorrow, we will have to pay great attention when it comes to defining our strategy. I think the choice is restricted to just a one or a two stop, but a lot depends on tyre behavior. We hope to make up some places and bring home a good result.”

Although both Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso are happy with the progress Ferrari have made since the start of the season, the Italian-outfit still believes there is room for improvement with the likes of Red Bull, McLaren and Mercedes still quicker than them in certain aspects. However, with Fernando Alonso currently leading the Drivers Championship, the season hasn’t been all doom and gloom so far for Ferrari.

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