Massa: Crash 'more psychological blow than physical'

After two big shunts at Monaco, Felipe Massa once again found his Ferrari hitting the wall again this weekend, this time spinning out of Q2 in wet conditions and going broadside into the tyre wall.

"I am very unhappy with the way qualifying went for me," he said after being released from the medical centre where he was taken for a routine check-up after the G-force indicator in the car's cockpit went off in the collision. "Track conditions were not easy, there was very little grip and I was struggling to put together a good lap.

"I went out in Q2 because I braked on a white line at Turn 3 and when the rear end broke away, there was nothing I could do anymore," he explained. "Physically, I'm fine, but within myself I'm very disappointed. Never before have I had three accidents in such close succession, even if it's always the case that when you try and give your all on tracks like this one and Monte Carlo, the risks are always higher.

"Physically, I'm fine - this crash was nothing compared to Monaco. The crash I had here is more a psychological thing than a physical one," he added. "It's a shame, I'm really disappointed about what happened."

"I still don't know exactly how badly damaged the car is, but even if I'm very disappointed with what happened, we must stay focused, because tomorrow's race will be long and on this track, anything can happen. I had a good pace today and tomorrow I plan to drive an attacking race".

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali was quick to reassure the media that Massa had been uninjured in the latest accident. However, the Brazilian will now have to start from 16th place on the grid at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Sunday and will have an uphill climb to regain any of the ground he lost with the accident.

For Domenicali, Massa's problems were part of a larger picture of disappointment for Ferrari in Montreal this weekend, with the F138 simply not coping well with the unseasonably chilly, wet conditions they had found so far in Canada.

"Unfortunately we know that in these conditions we are suffering more than some others," he said. "These conditions - intermediates, going to dry and then back again - are the worst for us because we are not able to generate enough temperature to make sure the grip is there."

Even Fernando Alonso could do no better than sixth place on the grid for this weekend's race.

"Very difficult, extremely difficult, conditions," Alonso admitted when after the session concluded. "We were well aware how difficult this weekend could be, because with such changeable weather, the track can change from one lap to the next and right to the end, you can never be sure what are the right tyres to use.

"You need to interpret the grip at every corner because maybe the last time you passed that particular corner it was raining or it was getting dry, so you need to guess when you pass again there," he added. "I am reasonably happy to have salvaged what I could from a qualifying that featured so many unknowns.

But a lot of Ferrari's problems could be smoothed if - as forecast - Sunday proves sunny and significantly warmer.

"Everything is possible with Alonso, and with good weather we can have a good race," insisted Domenicali. "But a dry track is a very important condition for us."

"Starting from sixth here isn't bad, because you can overtake at this circuit," Alonso said. "I'm definitely hoping for a race with no rain, because in the dry, looking at yesterday's long runs, we can be more competitive and quicker than some of the cars that start in front of us tomorrow.

"The aim is still to make up ground on our closest competitors," he pointed out. "With Raikkonen [starting from ninth] we have a slightly better chance of doing so, as he is starting behind me, while with Vettel [on pole] it's a tougher task.

"In any case, I won't take anything for granted, because here, especially if it rains, anything can happen," he said. "It can be the case that strategy counts for less than luck does."