Felipe Massa Q&A

"Yes. My championship in Euro F3000 was incredible because it was my first year in the category. The test with Sauber was very, very good. It was a good opportunity for me and remains a good opportunity for the future."



"The power is incredible in the beginning over the first two or three laps. But then it became normal again. The most difficult thing to adapt to was the brakes. They are very difficult to get the feeling of, especially braking with the left foot all the time. They felt different to every other car I have driven. My only other difficulty was with my neck. With all the g forces, Mugello has two fast corners, this made it hard for me. But I think I got the feeling of the car very quickly. I was very happy with it."



"After the good times I set in my first Formula 1 test at Mugello, everybody is calling me the new Senna. I feel really flattered, but I want to keep my feet on the ground. Ayrton Senna was one of the greatest racing drivers of all time, and I have only tested for a couple of days in F1. That is definitely not enough to judge me by. My only goal is to do my best and be identified as Felipe Massa."



"All the time, money has been my problem. Now I am OK, but in the beginning it was a big problem for me. I didn't have money when I came to Europe, and I had to score the results to pay for more races."



"Yes, I've been surprised. I mean, Formula 1 cars are the best in the world. Everyone wants to race there. For me it's a little dream to able to test an F1 car. Now I would like to be able to complete my whole dream and race them."



"Of course it is important about the [link to] Ferrari, but now I want to do the best I can in testing with Sauber. Then we will see. It's a great honour for me to wear the Alfa Romeo brand on my overalls. It is also a way to be linked to the Fiat Group that is represented by Ferrari in Formula 1."



"Of course I would. First, I want to do my best in the tests and get into Formula 1. I want to race there, it's where I want to be. All the people at Sauber were very, very good to me. It was incredible to work with them."



"It was very different to what I am used to in formula cars. I crashed two times in the first race. At the first corner I hit an Audi, and then I spun because of the damage, and hit another Audi later in the race. It was very good to work with Alfa Romeo, they are a very professional team to work with. I liked the touring car environment very much, and I am grateful to Nordauto [the works Alfa team] for giving me to opportunity to show what I could do."



"Whatever happens in the future I will remember this period. I know that all the experiences I'm having in so many different cars will be very important for my growth as a professional racing driver. But I am absolutely convinced that a good driver must be able to drive on the limit in as many different kinds of car as possible. And, so far, everything is going well for me. I was quick in the Sauber at Mugello and quick in the Alfa 156."