What Was Lewis Hamilton’s Response to Felipe Massa’s “Robbery” Accusations After Crashgate?

Lewis Hamilton’s been chasing his 7th title ever since the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP tragedy. Wait a minute, the 7th world title? Hamilton already has 7 titles. Not if we go by Felipe Massa’s words. The Brazilian suggests that he was robbed of the 2008 title after the crashgate incident. But what was Lewis Hamilton’s response to these accusations back in the day?

The Singapore GP of 2008 is remembered as one of the darkest days in F1 history. Where a teammate intentionally crashed to give his partner an advantage. Yes, we’re talking about Nelson Piquet Jr crashing and giving Fernando Alonso an advantage. However, it didn’t only have repercussions for the Renault team but also for Felipe Massa’s championship. Had the incident not been there, Massa would’ve been the world champion. 

Massa is believed to have taken the F1 verdict to court as no action was taken about the “robbery” that happened because of the Singapore GP. But how did Lewis Hamilton react to these accusations back in the day? Hamilton called it a season filled with what-ifs and was shocked when Nelson Piquet advised that the team asked him to crash.

According to GPblog.com, Lewis Hamilton said “I think all we can say is that it was a tough season, things happened and there were lots of what-ifs’ throughout the season. We had quite a fair battle throughout and I’ve always found him to be a fair driver. So I’m a bit surprised and shocked to hear him say that, to be honest.”

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However, it doesn’t look like Felipe Massa would be able to change the decision in court.

Felipe Massa’s robbery claim to take a hit 

Bernie Ecclestone suggested that the FIA knew about the crash gate before the season ended. No decision was taken to remove the Singapore GP from championship considerations as later it was suggested that results cannot be changed once the trophies were given and the season had ended. While Massa may use Ecclestone’s claim in court, Bernie is known for saying a lot of irrelevant things while the other two people Charlie Whiting and Max Mosley, who could verify whether what Ecclestone is saying is true or not, aren’t with us anymore.

According to the Last Lap podcast, the host said “The FIA kinda knew what was going on with crashgate before the end of the season. Bernie says a lot of things and that’s the problem. And two of the people who knew the most Mosley and Whiting, they’re both no longer with us so they can’t extrapolate on what actually was known and what wasn’t known”

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What do you think about Lewis Hamilton’s comment on Crashgate?