Massa: It is nice to be back racing

Mar.11 (YF1) The Thursday Formula 1 drivers FIA press conference was a star-studded affair, with the returning Michael Schumacher, both McLaren drivers and both Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro drivers sharing the podium. In a way, Felipe Massa was also “returning” since his Budapest accident last year. “It’s great to be back after eight months, back to racing again,” said the Brazilian. Here are extracts from the press conference:

What are you most looking forward to during this season?
Felipe: Well, to get back to racing after eight months. It is a long time. I am looking forward to getting back to racing, to starting in a good direction after as Lewis said not many tests. But it is nice to be back racing.

What is it like to return, to be back in the car and back at a race meeting again?
Felipe: It is just nice to be back in business. That is my job for many years. I have lost a bit of races and just nice to be back. I feel really happy and a lot of motivation to get back to the job.

You are a former winner here, but also in the past you have had some slow parts to the season. Is that something you are conscious of and determined to change?
Felipe: I think it is something that we understood in the past that the first race is important to finish, important to score points. Even in the last years we always had some problems in the car to finish the race. That I hope doesn’t happen. I hope we can finish most of the races in good points as we know at the end of the season it is always important to be there on a good amount of points. Many people say at the beginning of the season what is important is the reliability. Reliability is always important. It is important to finish the race. We did a lot of kilometres in the winter test which helps when you have a good car to start the season.

If it was up to you and not working groups or the FIA, would you choose this year’s regulation regarding the refuelling ban and heavy cars at the start or last year’s regulation when it was a sprint from pit stop to pit stop?
Felipe: I think the regulations have to be good for everybody: for the drivers, for the teams but also a lot for the guys who are watching the race. It’s very difficult to say which ones (regulations) I prefer, the new ones or the ones from last year. We haven’t yet done a single race, it’s very early to say which one I prefer, but I think if it’s good to everybody – for the moment I don’t think anybody is against the regulations, so if it’s good for everybody, it should be no problem to change. It’s also a new challenge for everybody, we just need to focus on every new point and try to do the best.

Will the new distribution of points with 25 for the first, 18 to the second, change your approach and maybe your strategy for the race?
Felipe: I think the winner, the victory is always more important than anything, so if you win, maybe to have a little bit more points is always better.