Massa’s Belgian grid error being probed by the FIA

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, BELGIUM: As if Fernando Alonso clocking in with no points was not enough for Ferrari, Felipe Massa was discovered for overshooting his grid slot at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix. Formula One’s governing body, the FIA, are now investigating how the Ferrari driver escaped a penalty at Spa.

Massa was well ahead of his grid box as the drivers assembled for the start of the race, two metres ahead according to the BBC. Stewards and rival teams did not seem to have notice or failed to report Massa’s error to race director Charlie Whiting.

“As no further information or complaints were received before the publication of the official result on Sunday night, the classification of the Belgian Grand Prix will now remain unchanged,” said an FIA spokeswoman. “The FIA are investigating the causes of the apparent failures in communication with race control in order to ensure a repetition is not possible.”

Drivers gear up for Monza

McLaren driver Jenson Button is more determined than ever to win the upcoming Italian GP after his disappointing performance at Spa. After being taken out by Red Bull’s Sebastial Vettel, Button now has a 35-point lag between him and championship leader Lewis Hamilton.

“Obviously, my non-finish in Spa wasn’t ideal for my championship aspirations, so I head to Monza next weekend determined to put myself back in the hunt for the title,” said Button. “We still have some work to do to make sure the package we bring to Italy is perfectly suited to the track, but I’m confident that our engineers have made some good steps forward, so we should be in good shape.”

Vettel still remains stubborn that the title will be Red Bull’s to claim. “I know how good we are, I will take the title,” a confident Vettel told Auto Bild Motorsport. “Someone who has the most pole positions must think that way. These 13 races have not run completely smoothly, but I’m only 31 points behind. Assuming we maintain our speed, we can catch up quickly.”

Meanwhile, Mercedes driver Michael Schumacher has played down Mercedes’ chances for the race. “We have seen already several times this year that circuits with characteristics like those of Monza do not really play in our hands. Of course, we’ll go there prepared to try hard to achieve the maximum we can from our package and we’ll see to what extent we can achieve that and fight our way through,” said Schumacher.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4^th, 2010.