Massa: Formula 1 row a nightmare

Felipe Massa says Formula 1 is facing a 'nightmare' at the moment, with rule changes planned by the FIA set to rob the sport of its premier status in his opinion

Following talks between drivers and the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) in the Istanbul paddock on Sunday morning, grand prix racing's stars made it clear that they fully supported the stance adopted by teams in their dispute with the FIA.

Speaking later in the day, Massa warned that he and several other drivers would not be interested in remaining in F1 if the FIA's plans to attract new teams through a £40 million budget cap went ahead.

"We as drivers, we want to race for the best teams in the world and we want to race with the best drivers," he said.

"For the moment, it is a nightmare what is happening in this fight. We want to know as drivers what was going on, and we wanted to give our opinion.

"Our opinion is that we wanted to race in the best category - and the best category means the one that has the best technology, the category that has the best teams, the best drivers - and in a category that is a top category in motorsport.

"If we do what Mr. Mosley wants, then we will not be at the top of motorsport - we will be in a different level. We will go down a lot on the level of the top categories.

"That is why we are together with the teams, we are together with FOTA. FOTA has eight teams and I hope that they can have a deal. I hope they can find a solution because we would love to carry on in F1. But if F1 is not possible because it is not F1 any more then we will go to another championship."

Massa' comments came after former world champion Fernando Alonso indicated that he too had no interest in racing under planned rules.

"I prefer to race in any other category before in the new F1," he told the Spanish media. "A model similar to GP2 or F3 is not interesting for any driver, for any sponsor or for any circuit or television network. In that case it would be a category without any sense. We'll have to see what the options are.

"The teams have done their maximum: they have signed up for the 2010 championship. But you cannot suddenly move from a budget of 500 million to one of 45 million a year. It's possible in three years, which is what the teams are proposing. It's impossible for them to do more. Now the ball is on the FIA's court.

"If the manufacturers cannot sign up for F1 and they organise a parallel championship, that would be the most interesting, because you would see the technology and the fastest cars in the world and, in the end, that's where the drivers want to be."