Massa’s Ferrari contract extended until 2012

Felipe Massa will continue to drive for Ferrari until the end of the 2012 season

Felipe Massa’s contract with the Ferrari team has been extended until the 2012 season. In an announcement today, the Brazilian said that he is able to continue racing with his “second family”. This is despite him being out-performed in many races this year by team-mate Fernando Alonso.

Felipe spoke today about his new deal with Ferrari:

"Throughout my entire Formula 1 career, I have always raced with an 
engine made in Maranello and it is a matter of pride for me to be 
able to continue working with a team that I regard as a second 
family."

Also, team principal Stefano Domenicali added:

"Felipe has been part of Ferrari for almost a decade and together 
with us, he has grown as a driver and as a man, going through some 
very difficult times as well as giving us moments of great 
happiness. We wanted to show proof of stability for the future, 
believing in the worth of a driver pairing that is without equal 
in terms of talent, speed and its ability to work together for 
the good of the team."

While this isn’t totally unexpected, I’m a little bit surprised by this news. Felipe has been beaten by Fernando 4 times out of 7 races so far this year, and it would have been more if it wasn’t for Fernando’s crash in Monaco, Massa holding him up in Australia, and Alonso’s engine failure in Malaysia.

With Ferrari having an unchanged line-up for the next 2 years, McLaren not going to change drivers any time soon, and Renault and Mercedes looking solid as well, this means that there will be very little driver transfers for next season. More on this later.