Analysis: Massa in Danger of Missing Out

Felipe Massa started the Formula One season as the new kid on the grid, stepping into the shoes of 'The Iceman'.

A complete personality contrast to young Finn Kimi Raikkonen, his predecessor at Sauber, the 21-year-old Brazilian was talked of as the new Nelson Piquet, an outgoing driver with the speed of a champion.

If the paddock gossip machine was to be believed, Massa was going to take Grand Prix racing by storm before moving on to Ferrari in short order as Michael Schumacher's teammate.

"I think he's a future champion," said fiery Frenchman Jean Alesi before the season started. "I've watched him testing ... and he's mad, fast and clever."

Massa scored a point in his second Grand Prix but of late it all seems to have gone pear-shaped and it may even be some time before he is back on the grid again. Germany's Heinz-Harald Frentzen is due to replace him next year alongside Nick Heidfeld in what amounts to Team Moenchengladbach and Sauber accelerated their plans after the Italian Grand Prix.

Monza stewards ruled that Massa had caused an avoidable collision and he became the first driver to receive the new sanction, introduced this year, of being demoted 10 places on the grid for his next race. Whenever that may be.

Sauber neatly side-stepped the problem by drafting in Frentzen for tests at Silverstone on Thursday, with a view to him replacing Massa at Indianapolis next week and consequently Massa could be out in the cold for quite a while.

Still Fast

Massa is still fast, and Sauber are clearly still interested in his development with the offer of a test driver role for 2003, but he must beware his chances of finding a drive evaporating. Paddock insiders are divided about his talents but he says he has learned steadily in his rookie year.

"In the beginning and to the middle of the year I had a lot of problems in qualifying but in the last two I have improved a lot, and I had a good performance," the Brazilian said before the Monza debacle. "I think I have a had a lot of improvement from the beginning of the year to now. It is experience, 90 percent of it for sure."

Massa says he wants to race for a competitive team but there are few openings remaining and plenty of talent still out there looking for a display case. Toyota might be a possibility but compatriot Cristiano da Matta appears to have that in the bag.

The likeable Brazilian, whose accident-prone style befits a man whose father owns a Sao Paulo plastics factory making bumpers for trucks, can be forgiven this time for wondering what hit him. Short in stature but not in confidence, Massa had been accused of careless driving before his collision with Jaguar's Pedro de la Rosa in Italy.

Both Renault drivers slammed him in Monaco in May for allegedly blocking them in qualifying and he then shunted compatriot Enrique Bernoldi off the track in the race before crashing out himself with brake failure. He had given his mechanics a headache long before that with frequent and expensive crashes in testing.

"I hope to find a solution and stay as a race driver," he said at Monza. "We speak with some teams. I don't have a job yet for next year so everybody we talk to is something positive. I think I have done a good job this year and hope to find the best solution for my future."