The strength of Felipe Massa’s case against F1, Bernie Ecclestone, and the FIA was tested on the final day of a pre-trial hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice.
The third and final day of evidence in the pre-trial event began with Massa’s legal team of Nick de Marco KC and Khendra Potts finishing their response to the initial wave of evidence from the KCs representing the three defendants, with Massa once again in Court 73 to witness proceedings.
After lunch, David Quest KC (for Ecclestone), John Mehrzad KC (for the FIA), and Anneliese Day KC for FOM responded to the claims of Massa’s legal team, with Mehrzad describing the hearing as an “abject waste of time.”
He alleged that Massa’s central case was the possibility of a “conspiracy” centred around Ecclestone and Max Mosley deciding to keep quiet after learning Nelson Piquet Jr had crashed deliberately in the 2008 Singapore GP during the 2008 season.
Marzhad claimed that Massa’s other claims of a breach of contract and breach of duty from the FIA were simply being used to “pad out” an otherwise thin case.
Massa’s case is built around an interview Ecclestone gave to F1 Insider in March 2023, in which he claimed he was aware during the 2008 Brazilian GP that Piquet had crashed on purpose, and with Mosley, decided to cover it up.
The Brazilian’s legal team argues that the statute of limitations on the case, therefore does not begin with the World Motor Sport Council’s verdict into crashgate in September 2009, but rather starts anew from March 2023 after Ecclestone’s interview.
However, Day, representing F1 rubbished this point.
She claimed that Massa not being able to “piece it together” during 2009 "did not matter" and that, given the well-known links between Mosley, Ecclestone and Charlie Whiting, the FIA official to whom Piquet Sr had disclosed the deliberate nature of the accident, it should have been obvious that Ecclestone was aware in 2008, and not during 2009.
“Massa knew it, he knew it all the time”, Day told Mr Justice Jay towards the end of the proceedings.
“The idea that Massa didn’t know simply doesn’t fly, and we don’t need a trial for that.”
Day also picked up on Massa not seeking independent legal advice in the autumn of 2009 after the WMSC decision, and being told by Ferrari that there was “nothing he could do.”
“Someone with proper due diligence would have sought their own legal advice,” she said.
Proceedings than wrapped up, with Mr Justice Jay indicating that his decision on a verdict over a full-scale trial would be “fairly soon”, notwithstanding his other commitments.
He also stressed the importance of not leaking his draft statement to the court.
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