Grand Prix Rejects

http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/massa ... -1-813320/ thank you for the memories

It's kinda sad to lose a guy who's been a big part of F1 for the last 10 years or so, but I think his time has come. I'm curious to see what he does next.

Sad to see him go in a way because he reminds me of a simpler time of f1 (plus his crashtastic ways in 2002). But at the same time I do understand why he had to go now, he had lost his speed over the last two seasons and he doesn't want to end his career by dragging it out (Alan Jones, Damon Hill, Nigel Mansell, Michele Alboreto).

Thanks for the memories Felipe. My favorite race win of his was Brazil 2006 and what a race that was!

As much as I was glad to see a Brit win in 08 I was gutted for Felipe, sad to see him go.
If I was Daniil Kvyat right now I'd be sprinting all the way to Claire Williams' office; it's probably the only way he's remaining in F1 in a half decent car whilst in an environment which is a lot more patient than that of Red Bull.

It's the right decision. I respect him for knowing when to move aside, and quite frankly his time is up.

Thanks for the memories Felipe.

A shame. I'll remember him as having an interesting career, being a bit Max-tastic at first, not being totally demolished by MSC as many folk predicted and then being so close to winning what would've been a well earned world title.

Of course, it's only my opinion it would've been a well earned title, your mileage may vary. In fact, had he won, I'm sure many on here would view him as that nefarious thing......an "unworthy" champion but still...

In a better universe somewhere, Felipe Massa won the 2008 world title. Certainly the best driver on more than one occasion in his heyday. Never quite was the same after his Hungary accident, and I think now's a good time to call it quits on his own terms. 250 Grands Prix is still one hell of a career.

I have to agree with the sentiment of many here that, whilst it is a shame to see Massa calling time on his career, it does also feel like this is the best time for him to do so. It also feels very appropriate, given how much of a mentor Schumacher was to him, that he chose to make his announcement at the same circuit and almost exactly 10 years to the day that Michael announced his first retirement from the sport.

He is getting to leave on the terms that he wants to leave on and, given that Williams seem to be on a downward trend at the moment, will hopefully still have the chance to score some decent results before the team has declined too far.

As others have noted, it does feel as if the accident in Hungary did perhaps take some of the shine off his performances, but he can at least still look back on what was still quite a successful career. I suppose the question is what he might go on to do next - whilst I imagine that he is perhaps looking forward to spending more time with his family, I imagine that passion for motorsport will still remain there for a while yet.

Interlagos 2008, and Felipe's utter grace and gentlemanliness at time of the worst defeat imaginable will be something I won't easily forget.

Perhaps there were things that I didn't necessarily like about Felipe, and perhaps it's not the biggest travesty in the history of Grand Prix racing that a driver of the calibre of Felipe never won a title - but world titles have been won with significantly weaker campaigns than Felipe's 2008.

In my mind, motor racing is specifically about the stories -- stories of things that I have seen and stories that I could only read about. When time wears on, decades go by, and I come across an old photo of the bright helmet of Felipe in that beautiful (non-debatable!) 2005 Sauber, or a Ferrari on one of his worst years - it will spark my mind with so many good stories. Farewell, Felipe.

Goodbye Felipe, you will be missed greatly. The 2008 Brazilian GP is the only time something on television has made me cry. The emotion pouring out of poor Felipe on the podium was heartbreaking. I have watched F1 since 2002 and Felipe and Mark Webber are my 2 favourite drivers of this period (possibly of all time, not sure). Well done for going out with dignity, Williams has ended the careers of 2 Brazilian drivers who did not want to go in recent year; Barrichello in 2011 and Bruno Senna in 2012. Felipe goes out on his own terms with his head held high.

Some of Felipe's best Grand Prix:

2005 Canadian Grand Prix - 4th behind Raikkonen and both Ferraris in a Sauber!
2006 Malaysian Grand Prix - Beat Schumacher fair and square
2006 European Grand Prix - First podium
2006 Turkish Grand Prix - First win - "Sorry about Michael!"
2006 Brazilian Grand Prix - First win at home in front of an adoring crowd
2008 Hungarian Grand Prix - Stunning performance after average qualifying until an engine failure took away a well-deserved win
2008 Brazilian Grand Prix - Dominant drive, and see above
2009 German Grand Prix - Best of the rest behind the 2 Red Bulls in a fairly dire car
2010 German Grand Prix - Would have beaten Alonso if not for team orders
2012 Japanese Grand Prix - Back on the podium after a very long time
2014 Austrian Grand Prix - First non-Mercedes pole of the Turbo era
2014 Brazilian Grand Prix - A home podium that he feared would never happen again
2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - Chasing down a genuinely flustered Hamilton for a near-victory; just like old times!

Bye Felipe, you will be missed!

I don't see him declining, considering he's the same rough equal of Bottas now that he was the past two years, but okay. I guess he's had enough for some vague reason.

Congratulations to Massa on a good career, to be able to make it back after Hungary 2009 takes courage. Best of luck for whatever the future holds for him.

I think I'd say Massa's best race was Hungary 2008. His start was phenomenal and he held first place on merit, when everyone assumed it would be a Hamilton whitewash. I remember it also came a fortnight after the press had said he was completely unable following the German Grand Prix. The Hungaroring weekend pretty much sums up Massa's 2008: poor at the beginning, great performances through the rest of it and then tragedy at the end.

Honourable mention to Spain 2009, where he was driving the wheels off of that 'Ferrari', and only lost places at the end due to the car dying on him.

Sad to hear the news. I thought he had a couple more years in him, since of the old guard (Button, Räikkönen, Alonso and him) he was the most recent debutante.
I understand his decision to retire though. But it's a shame he never won a World Championship. In better circumstances, it would for sure have been possible even after 2008. I will be cheering like a hell for him to get one last podium in Interlagos, even though I doubt it can be done with this car.

And let's not forget about Galvão Bueno, who must be completely beside himself with the news. Whoever shall he blindly cheer for and accuse their team of sabotage now? I don't see him having the same passion for the other Felipe!