Motorsport witnessed two sad events in the past couple of weeks. One with young Formula Two driver Henry Surtees, which was fatal. And the second with Ferrari’s Massa. Both injured by debris on the track, the FIA has asked for an investigation. I was unable to watch any video with Surtees, as I am still reeling from the video of the fateful accident involving Ayrton Senna in ’94 at Imola. Replays of Massa’s crash showed a heavy spring hitting his head and then he crashing front first into the tire-wall. With multiple head injuries and a concussion, and an injury to the eye, Massa will be out for weeks. And so that brings to the question, who will replace him at Valencia?
Luca Badoer and Marc Gené are the test drivers for Ferrari, but they do not have a great track record and hence do not seem a fit to replace Massa, especially for the rest of the season if that happens. So our heads turn to The Man himself. With him still working as a consultant to Ferrari, Michael Schumacher may yet make a comeback. And why not? It seems like he left on a pretty low note. What would he not give for the glory again? He may not be the most modest person, and with an ego like that of Sir Alex, he would likely relish the opportunity. And so would each one of the millions of racing fans. He has driven the new-but-old Ferrari during testing and still knows the circuits up and down. It would be a momentous affair if he were to get behind the wheel at Valencia. I mean two former world champions in the same car. Wow!
But then it’s not the same Ferrari with Todt now out. The new car seems to lack everything it needs to compete, well, except in Hungary. So, would Michael want to be the man to bring Ferrari back on top? Or would it be someone who has been in the news for eternity now. Alonso could make a one race switch, like a test drive, to Ferrari with Renault banned for the European GP. Now that’s whole other story. With Kimi seemingly looking at other avenues, it seems very well likely that Alonso might just be sitting in the F60 successor next year. And better yet, maybe in the F60 itself this year. With Massa showing all the qualities of a fighter last season, and Alonso always hungry for more, it seems a great team. I agree, I love Kimi, he is wonderful, but he seems too cool and uninvolved. Maybe a sign of things to come?
Anyhow, whoever will replace Massa at Valencia, will surely be looked on as a future prospect, unless it is Michael. But what if it is Villeneuve, an unattractive option to say the least. But then, this year has been a weird one. It will be a wonderful 3 weeks of much speculation (Oh, how I love that part of sports) and rumors. Let’s just hope it is a big as it should be.
UPDATE: Schumi will take over Massa's seat as confirmed today by Ferrari, maybe for the rest of the season. It's going to be LEGENDARY!
UPDATE again: LEGENDARY is off the tracks ... sad for everyone!
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