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High Court Clears Part of Felipe Massa’s £64m ‘Crashgate’ Case for Trial

The judge concluded that new facts from a 2023 Ecclestone interview allow a narrowed conspiracy claim without reopening the 2008 standings.

Overview

  • Mr Justice Robert Jay ruled that Massa has a real prospect of proving unlawful means conspiracy and inducement against F1, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone.
  • The court dismissed Massa’s bid for declaratory relief and found no real prospect that the FIA owed him duties, confirming it cannot rewrite the 2008 championship result.
  • The judgment rejected limitation arguments after accepting that Ecclestone’s 2023 remarks could have provided essential facts Massa previously lacked.
  • The case advances on significantly narrowed grounds requiring reformulated pleadings and French law expert evidence, with no trial date set.
  • Massa seeks about £64 million in damages and plans broad disclosure requests, while the defendants maintain the claim is misguided and time‑barred and point to Ferrari’s errors in Singapore.