Formula One news
Di Montezemolo shares latest on Massa
27 July 2009Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo travelled from Italy to Hungary on Monday to visit driver Felipe Massa, who remains in an induced coma after his shock accident in qualifying at the Hungaroring on Saturday. With the Brazilian due to be woken up on Tuesday morning, di Montezemolo is hopeful for his driver's full recovery.
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| Massa crashed during the Q2 phase of the qualifying session |
With worries surrounding Massa's eyesight in his left eye after an 800 gram (1.7 pound) steel spring struck his helmet on Saturday, di Montezemolo visited Massa's bedside in Budapest's AEK hospital alongside with the family of the driver. "I'm confident and optimistic about Felipe's capacity to recover," di Montezemolo said on leaving the hospital. "He has excellent medical care and I want to thank the staff at the AEK hospital for the work they're doing. Thank you also to Professor Sailant and Piete, who came here immediately. Their support will be fundamental also from a psychological point of view for Felipe's family and for the whole team."
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| Massa straight-lined Turn 4 before hitting the tyre barrier |
Having met Raphaela, wife of Felipe, as well as the parents of the 28-year-old, di Montezemelo has absolutely no doubts over the closely-knit strength of the family: "They are fantastic people, a very united family, and their presence will help Felipe a lot in the coming days. It was a serious and incredible accident but, thank God, this is a different situation compared to 1976 when I went to see Niki Lauda after the accident at the Nürburgring. We have to wait but the signs are encouraging."
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| Felipe was airlifted from the circuit by helicopter |
Although reports appear to indicate ever more strongly that Massa will not been seen in a racing car again this year, this is not at the front of the Ferrari president's mind. "Our priority is the recovery of Felipe as a man," di Montezemolo continued. "He has been with us for a long time and he is part of the family and not just of the team. We're all waiting for him at Ferrari and I'm convinced that we'll see him again in one of our single-seaters and that he will again be on top."
In the meantime, most likely candidates as replacement for the injured Brazilian are reserve drivers Luca Badoer or Marc Gené, Minardi race team-mates of 1999. "Yesterday's race would have been perfect for Felipe," di Montezemolo added. "I'm heading back to Maranello with (Stefano) Domenicali (team principal), who will make suggestions as to how to substitute the Brazilian driver until he returns, which I hope will be very soon. We'll make a decision when the time is right, considering that there's a break of a month now."
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