Ecclestone pushes back as Massa case looms

Bernie Ecclestone has downplayed suggestions that Formula 1’s authorities deliberately buried the truth of the 2008 ’Crashgate’ scandal, just weeks before Felipe Massa’s lawsuit reaches a London court.

The former F1 supremo, who turns 95 on the opening day of the October 28 hearings, told The Times there was never a mechanism for cancelling the controversial Singapore GP that year - despite Massa’s claims the race should have been annulled.

"There is no way in the world anyone could change or cancel that race," Ecclestone said. "There were no provisions for that to happen.

"Max (Mosley) knew there was not enough evidence at the time to do anything."

He insisted the late FIA president had not sought a cover-up. "Max was not saying we should cover this up but just that it was not good for the image of Formula 1," Ecclestone added.

Massa, the Brazilian ex-Ferrari driver, who narrowly lost the 2008 title to Lewis Hamilton, argues the Renault team’s deliberate crash should have voided the race - a stance bolstered last year when Ecclestone was quoted in Germany saying Hamilton "shouldn’t have" been champion.

But the Briton now says that comment has been misused.

"This was an interview I gave to someone in Germany. The guy at the time, his English wasn’t that good and he was taking notes. It was picked up by someone in England," Ecclestone explained.

"I didn’t even remember the bloody interview until the lawyers submitted it. The lawyers for myself, the FIA and F1 do not understand how it can be heard in a court."

Massa, 44, continues to call the affair a "conspiracy" that harmed both himself and Brazil, framing his legal action as a moral fight for justice and a precedent for the future.

He is claiming tens of millions in damages.