Felipe Massa has been forced to backtrack on comments he made claiming that new Ferrari teammate Fernando Alonso was aware of Renault's plans to deliberately crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. Alonso won that race after the safety car was brought out when Renault's No. 2 driver Nelson Piquet Jr spun out on lap 14, and Massa subsequently claimed it cost him that year's world title as he finished one point behind champion Lewis Hamilton. Motorsport's ruling body the ...

Felipe Massa will not be returning to Formula One this season, his Ferrari team have officially announced. The Brazilian has been out of action since a freak crash in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix left him with life-threatening head injuries. The speed of his recovery from a fractured skull has prompted speculation he could take the wheel of the Ferrari for the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi on November 1. Indeed Massa will get back on the track in ...

Felipe Massa has been cleared to return to the wheel of a Ferrari following medical tests in Paris which confirmed his continuing successful recovery from a serious skull injury. The Brazilian will return to the Italian team's Maranello base on Sunday, and then test drive a private F2007 single-seater the next day "under the personal assistance of the F1 Clienti department," according to the Ferrari Web site. "The medical team, coordinated by Professor Jean-Charles Piette, the FIA's medical delegate, finished ...

French Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand said Thursday he will not resign over his admission in a book that he paid to have sex with "boys" in Thailand. In an interview with French television network TF1, Mitterrand said he "absolutely condemn[s] sexual tourism, which is a disgrace, and ... pedophilia," in which he insisted he has never participated. The minister described his 2005 book, "The Bad Life," as a mix of autobiography and fiction. In one passage, published by the French ...

With all the pomp and money befitting its status as the world's richest city, Abu Dhabi will soon unveil its new Formula One track on Yas Island, a spectacular entertainment destination emerging from the turquoise waters off the coast of the Emirati capital. In true Gulf style, the new Yas Marina Circuit is iconic -- its roof is huge, ringed with thousands of lights, and modeled on the classic double curve of a Ferrari racing chassis. The new flagship Yas ...

FIA presidential candidate Ari Vatanen believes that Nelson Piquet Jr should have been punished for his role in Formula One's "Crashgate" affair. Vatanen told CNN: "I do not understand why Nelson Piquet Jr wasn't punished. For me his immunity was not correct." The former world rally champion, who is hoping to succeed FIA president Max Mosely was scathing of Piquet Jr's behavior throughout. "He only went public after he was sacked," Vatanen said. "He should have said no in the ...

Formula One is currently being torn apart over a row concerning next season's proposed $60 million budget cap. The sport's world governing body Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) wants teams to sign up to the agreement for the 2010 season but has met resistance from Ferrari and other leading constructors who claim it will create a "two tier" championship. In a bid by the FIA to survive a "harsh recessionary period" the body published plans on its Web site to ...

A dejected Michael Schumacher described his aborted return to Formula One as his "toughest moment" after a neck injury left him unable to drive for Ferrari in the European Grand Prix as a replacement for Felipe Massa. The seven-time world champion told a televised press conference on Wednesday that he was so disappointed that he was unable to even think about reviving his comeback hopes later this season. Massa, who suffered serious head injuries in a qualifying crash ...

Michael Schumacher's comeback to Formula One later this month has been placed into doubt because of a lingering neck injury. The seven-time world champion is due to replace stricken Ferrari driver Felipe Massa in the European Grand Prix in Valencia later this month, but his spokesperson Sabine Kehm told ZDF television in Germany that the injury could wreck his return. "He's still not absolutely certain that his neck will hold up. His return depends on medical examinations which have yet ...

Michael Schumacher will not be able to test for Ferrari ahead of his F1 comeback after the rival Williams team refused to give permission. The 40-year-old Schumacher has been drafted in as a replacement for the stricken Felipe Massa and wanted to be granted a day at the wheel of the Ferrari F60 before the European Grand Prix at Valencia in three weeks time. Massa leaves hospital in Hungary Testing is banned during the season so Ferrari wrote ...