I have to say I was not much bothered by the radio message from Felipe Massa's race engineer Rob Smedley in Singapore, which was released in the official race edit on www.formula1.com over the weekend and has been doing the rounds since.
In the clip, which takes place at some indeterminate point during the race, Smedley is heard to say to Massa: "Hold Hamilton as much as we can. Destroy his race as much as we can. Come on, boy…"
As we all know, the pair collided on lap 12 when Hamilton appeared to misjudge his turn-in, clipping the back of Massa and damaging his front wing as well as giving the Ferrari a puncture. Hamilton received a drive-through penalty for his trouble and finished fifth, while Massa finished ninth before clashing with the Briton in the interview pen afterwards.
Although this 'revelation' is bound to stoke up the bad feeling that currently exists between them, I'd like to believe that Smedley was only trying to encourage his driver, quite naturally, to stay in front of what was patently a faster car for as long as possible rather than anything more sinister. He said it on an open radio channel after all.
The use of the word 'destroy' was probably ill-advised though. In the wake of 'Crashgate' in 2008, when it failed to ban Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds as it wanted to, the FIA brought in a 'staff licence' which commits six key members of the team – "including the Team Principal, Sporting Director, Team Manager, Technical Director and two race engineers" - to a new FIA Code of Good Standing.
Ferrari may be concerned that some will accuse them of unsportsmanlike conduct. I don't see that.
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