Lucas di Grassi reveals staggering 'Crashgate' impact: 'It damaged my career'

Former F1 driver Lucas di Grassi has revealed the 'Crashgate' scandal dealt significant damage to his own racing career.

The controversial 2008 Singapore Grand Prix saw Renault's Nelson Piquet Jr. instructed to intentionally crash to aid team-mate Fernando Alonso's run to victory.

17 years on, the controversy is back in the news headlines as Felipe Massa's legal action against F1, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone has commenced. 

Massa is seeking £64 million plus interest, as he believes the infamous incident cost him the drivers' title that season, while Lewis Hamilton walked away with the crown. 

The former Ferrari driver was present at the High Court in London on Wednesday, for what was the first of a three-day hearing. Massa had been leading the Singapore race until Piquet's crash triggered a safety car, under which Ferrari performed a disastrous pit stop, leading to no points scored by Massa.

Massa's legal case is based on comments from Ecclestone in 2023 that he knew what Renault had done at the time, but that he and then-FIA president Max Mosley said nothing to "protect the sport". 

Di Grassi, a close friend of Massa who raced for Virgin F1 in 2010, was present in Singapore as Renault's reserve driver and saw the scandal unfold on the pit wall. 

Discussing what Brazil has made of Massa's decision to take F1, the FIA and Ecclestone to court, di Grassi told RacingNews365 in an exclusive interview: "Well, I cannot generalise for Brazil. 

"I have no idea because I haven't done any research, I don't know. In my view, I like Felipe, he is a very good friend of mine. He did an amazing championship that year. Did he deserve to win? Yes.

"But, this sport, so many things can happen that if you start analysing all the possible scenarios that have happened in the last 40 years of the sport, there are so many ways you can frame it." 

“There is so many ifs in this sport that it's very hard to justify anything. 

"I wish he was champion. Yes, I think he was the moral champion of that year. Will it change anything if he wins? I guess financially for him. But apart from that, I would not like to see this precedent being open to every single possible championship that was lost or fought in a different way. 

"I really hope he gets what he deserves, but at the same time, I don't want the sport to open this precedent."

Piquet was 'pretty much fired'

Piquet's crash allowed team-mate Alonso to take the lead and claim victory at the Marina Bay Circuit, the first of two races Renault won that year. 

Piquet was retained for the start of the 2009 season despite being under considerable pressure, but the second seat almost went a different direction.

According to di Grassi, who has competed in Formula E since 2014, Piquet was "pretty much fired" at the time of the incident, and di Grassi was expecting to be promoted to replace him.

But due to 'Crashgate', contract negotiations with di Grassi stalled while it handled the heat from the incident, which saw the 40-year-old left out of consideration.

"It damaged my career," revealed di Grassi. "Because I was the reserve driver for Renault. I was going to get Nelson's [seat] because Nelson, by that time, was pretty much fired, and I was the next one in line to go up into that racing seat. 

"And after Singapore, everything stalled and they also renewed [his] contract. So that thing also kind of impacted my career. I might go back and sue [Renault]! That will never happen. Also I would be in a different position in my career. 

"It's very hard, and of course, it would have been a difference in my career, because then probably I would have had a few more races with a better team instead of with Virgin in F1. 

"Then I would have probably, I don't know, scored points in F1. It would have changed my life financially at the time."

Piquet was later dropped mid-2009, before he revealed that he had been instructed to crash intentionally in Singapore. 

Asking di Grassi if he felt at the time that Piquet had intentionally crashed, he revealed: "I had my suspicion, but it was never confirmed. I only got to know the full story when it was fully reviewed."