Ecclestone will celebrate his 95th birthday in court alongside Massa.
Bernie Ecclestone will celebrate his 95th birthday at London’s High Court alongside Felipe Massa. Massa, the former Ferrari driver, filed an estimated $82 million lawsuit against the FIA, Formula 1, and former F1 CEO Ecclestone about a year ago. He claims that comments made by Ecclestone in 2023 clearly indicated that both F1 and the FIA were aware before the end of the 2008 season—that is, prior to the public emergence of the 'crashgate' scandal—that Nelson Piquet had intentionally crashed his Renault in Singapore.
Respected trade publications have reported that the High Court has scheduled the commencement of the proceedings for October 28 of this year, which also happens to be Ecclestone’s birthday. Representatives from the FIA and FOM have also been summoned for the proceedings.
"Efforts to reach an amicable settlement failed, leaving Mr. Massa with no choice but to pursue legal action," stated Massa’s attorneys at Vieira Rezende Advogados. "He is seeking justice for a historical injustice and compensation for his losses."
The 43-year-old Brazilian driver told Globo: "This fight is about fairness in sports. The courts will make the decisions that the FIA and FOM refused to confront."
There has been no comment from the FIA and F1 commercial rights holder Liberty Media regarding the latest updates. However, long-time F1 journalist Roger Benoit reported from Bahrain prior to pre-season testing in Blick newspaper: "The trial is now focused not on the world championship title but solely on a potential multi-million compensation payout to Massa."
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