Budapest, 31st July

Apart from the technical benefits derived from last week's Jerez test, his day in the cockpit in Spain will also have given Felipe Massa a chance to sample the very high temperatures that are also a feature here in Budapest, where the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro driver arrived to face the media this afternoon. No matter how much a driver might want to put a disappointing race weekend behind him, the press are always waiting at the next Grand Prix to remind him and the first question for the Brazilian centred on the German Grand Prix. "In the last race, we didn't find the performance level we expected," admitted Felipe. "Since then, we have understood what the reasons were, but it's not something I want to explain. I feel we have solved these problems now, thanks to a lot of hard work from everyone in the team, both in Jerez and in the factory. Because of this, I think we can expect to have a very different weekend here in Hungary. That doesn't necessarily mean we are going to win, because we are up against a McLaren team that is very strong at the moment. But at the very least, I think we can be very competitive here."


While the Anglo-German team might be very strong at the moment, Massa certainly doesn't believe it is unbeatable. "It is very easy to say that McLarens are the "kings" at the moment, because they have been dominant and won the last two races, but I do not think this means their car is better than ours," said the Brazilian. "They have obviously done a good job in the last two races, but to some extent they were helped by conditions that did not suit us so well. Before the last two races, they were getting criticised for not performing and that is how this sport works, in that the balance can change quickly. There is still a long way to go in the championship and I know we have a good team which is in the lead in the Constructors, with me and Kimi second and third in the Driver classification. It is all very close and things can change very quickly. As a team, we are all one hundred percent motivated to do our very best this weekend and in fact from now on until the end of the season. Only then will we know who did the best job. Comparing this point of the season with the same time last year, we are in better shape now, so we do not need to over react to the situation and change the way we work. During a season, you can have great days and bad days, so the important thing is to stay focussed on our targets, without taking notice of what the media is saying about us. We have been pushing very hard on the car development front, trying to bring as many new developments to the car as possible."

Even with so many races still to go, the media is intrigued by the fact that both Ferrari men are racing one another for wins and points, but to Massa, it seems the only logical way to go. "For the moment Kimi and I are very close on points," he agreed. "If later in the year, one of us has a lot more points than the other then maybe it will be time to see what we do, but that is not yet the case, so we continue to work in the same way."

The most visible sign of change on the F2008 was the arrival at the Jerez test of the "anvil" engine cover, but Massa played down its importance. "It is just the most visible sign of the development work on the car and so it attracts the most attention, but it is just part of a continuous programme of improving the total package and we always bring new components, but they are not always visible."

And a final word on this Hungarian event? "I love this city, I think it is fantastic and I like being here, even if the track is a bit like a go-kart track, but the atmosphere for the race is always good here on Sunday. It can be a tough race because you don't have any time to relax on a lap as there are no real straights and plenty of corners. On top of that, it looks like being a very hot weekend, which makes life even more tiring."