Peter Sauber is well known for his talent spotting abilities and at the end of the 2000 season he brought young Finn Kimi Raikkonen in to test out his F1 car. From there he quickly signed the youngster up to drive for him in the 2001 season and the rest is history. With Raikkonen opting to go to McLaren, Peter Sauber was forced to look elsewhere for his second driver and once again opted to sign a Grand Prix novice.
Felipe Massa, born on the 25th of April 1982 in Sao Paulo Brazil, was just 19 years old when he made his debut in Australia. Massa spent many years karting, staring back in 1990 when he finished fourth in the Sao Paolo Micro-Kart cat. Sixth the following year and third in '93, he continued in the series until 1998 when he made his debut in Formula Chevrolet with a fifth place finish in the Brazilian championship only to clinch the title the following season.
In 2000 he took victory in the Formula Renault Italian Series Championship followed the following year with yet another title to his name in the Formula Renault European Series Championship. 2001 saw yet another highlight in his career when he won the European F3000 championship with one race remaining. Riding high, Massa tested with Sauber at Mugello and signed up for the 2002 season.
His debut season saw a plenty of pace from Massa, but this was also punctuated with a wild streak that saw him spend plenty of time in gravel traps. Massa secured a season best placing of fifth in Spain, albeit it behind team-mate Nick Heidfeld as well as two other sixth positions. It was not enough to keep the Brazilian in Formula One, but after spending one season as a test driver for Ferrari in 2003, Massa returned to Sauber in 2004.
Having rid himself of some of his rougher edges testing with Ferrari, Massa was keen to show he fully deserved to be in F1 full time on his return. Massa scored points on five occasions and classifying himself 12th in the drivers' championship but could not quite match the pace of team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella over the season as a whole. The highlight of Massa's season was not his solid fourth position at Spa Francorchamps, but leading one lap of his home Grand Prix at Interlagos, the final race of the season.
Massa remained with Sauber in 2005 and was joined in the squad by former Champion Jacques Villeneuve. Undaunted by having a former Champion as a team-mate, Massa blitzed Villeneuve in the early part of the season as the Canadian adapted to life with the Swiss team. It was a tough season for all at Sauber however as Massa notched up just 11 points with his best result being a fourth position in Montreal.
The Brazilian got his big break in 2006 however as he moved from Sauber back to Ferrari but this time as a race driver. Lining up with Michael Schumacher, Massa was able to show his raw speed and on occasion even left Schumacher trailing. It was a solid first season with Ferrari for Massa. Playing the dutiful number two role to Schumacher, Massa was able to record his first Grand Prix win from pole position in Turkey and would finish the season in third position in the standings' behind Fernando Alonso and Schumacher after a dominant showing at his home Grand Prix in Brazil.
Massa faced another challenge in 2007 as he faced former Sauber protégé Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari. Two wins from the first four Grand Prix was a very promising start for Massa, but he would win just one more race over the season. His title challenge was blunted by brain fade in Montreal and a mechanical failure at Monza but despite this remained a championship contender until the latter stages of the season.
For 2008, Massa will be looking to improve on his fourth position in the 2007 championship and take the challenge to championship winning team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.
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