Massa's lawyers issue update: F1 given extension to complete "investigation"

Earlier this year, Massa announced that he would be pursuing legal action over the events of 2008 where he lost out on the title in the final race to Lewis Hamilton.

Massa finished just one-point behind Hamilton in the final standings - the closest he got to F1’s top prize in his lengthy career.

The 42-year-old’s decision to go down a legal route stems from the ‘Crashgate’ scandal which occurred at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

Renault’s fixing of the race in Singapore cost Massa the chance of winning that race - as he was on pole position and leading it at the time - but an early pit stop under the Safety Car (caused by Nelson Piquet Jr.’s deliberate crash) went wrong and saw him drop out of the points.

On Thursday evening, Massa lawyer, Bernardo Viana, issued the following statement.

“FIA and FOM are completing an internal investigation and have requested one last extension to the deadline they initially asked for, from Oct. 12th to Nov. 15th," it read.

“We have agreed to this final period because if the new administration is indeed looking into the matter in good faith, they will certainly reach the same conclusion we and so many people around the world have. 

“We would like to know what Formula 1's new leadership's position is on the recently disclosed scandal and the injustice faced by Felipe Massa."