Massa hopes to make his return to Brazil

One could say that Felipe Massa and the term ‘determined’ form an understatement given how the Brazilian driver has shown determination throughout his single-seater career. The Brazilian is still recovering from the skull fractures he suffered after a spring from Rubens Barrichello’s car struck him in the face during qualifying at the Hungaroring.

Although the accident forced him to stay away for several Grand Prix and highlighted the dangers of racing, Massa is adamant in stating that getting back into an F1 cockpit remains his sole focus.

«Of course, it’s my life,» he said in a long interview with the English newspaper The Guardian this Tuesday.

For me, the worst thing that happened to me was the inability to drive. If you can’t drive, it’s awful. If I don’t drive, then I’m not the same person. Since my early childhood, it’s my life. It’s what I love to do.

We know race car drivers are addicted to speed and risks, but such an accident can still affect them psychologically. Did he feel any change within himself? «No,» he says provocatively, before laughing. «Not at all. I remember in the hospital, when I woke up, I had an oxygen mask to help me breathe. I kept taking it off and putting it back on. […] I really hope, and expect, that nothing will change in me when I get back in the car and start attacking again.»

When the journalist asks him if he had any hesitation in jeopardizing his career, Massa simply replies: “No,” before adding: “For my family, it was very difficult because they followed everything and spent a lot of time with me. But for me, it was almost simpler.”

As soon as the accident happened, I was unconscious and three days later, I woke up. In the hospital, I didn’t see anything about the accident. I only had Hungarian TV channels. I only heard what they were saying about it. And for me, it was strange – was it really a spring from another car that could have caused this to me?

I saw the images when I got home, on television – like you. But I’ve had other accidents that disturbed me more than that. When I lost the brakes in Monaco in 2002, it was a huge accident. I also crashed twice in Barcelona because I had a suspension problem – and that accident made me think at the time.

The incident in Hungary is unlike anything I’ve seen. My wife would often tactfully ask me, “Don’t you think about, maybe [stopping]…?” And I would reply, “No, I would driver again.” My mother knows me well too. Sometimes she looks at me, pensive, but she knows enough not to ask me anything.

The recovery of Massa is on schedule, and on Monday, he underwent a successful operation to insert a titanium plate in his skull to reinforce it.

The operation, which took place at the Albert Einstein Hospital in São Paulo, took four and a half hours. After a short stay, Massa will return home and then begin his rehabilitation in anticipation of his return to F1 next year.

He revealed in the interview, which was held before the operation, that it should prevent him from returning to racing this year.

« In reality, I am fine. The only problem is I need surgery to fuse a bone in my head that they removed because it was completely damaged. A normal person can live like this without any problems. But for a pilot, if you have an accident and have this issue, recovery is more difficult. »

That’s why I need this surgery to fuse the bone. I want to have this operation quickly because it’s the only thing stopping me from running now. Otherwise, I feel the same as before. I’m going to Europe to use the simulator and drive some go-karts, and then I’ll know very well if I’m at 100%.

The accident involving Massa obviously made him think. He then promised to do everything upon his return to help the GPDA (Grand Prix Driver Association) improve safety for everyone: “We need to look for improvements,” he said. “I’m not saying we need to fully cover the cockpit. But maybe there are other things we can do on the cars to prevent a wheel from hitting your head like the unfortunate Henry Surtees.”

« Upon my return, it’s an issue I want to discuss with Charlie Whiting, the FIA, and the drivers – because we all need to work together. »

Massa expects to make his return at the home Grand Prix in Brazil next month: «It will be difficult to achieve, but I will be there.» he concluded in the newspaper.