Brazilian prepared to combat resurgent McLaren threat.
Despite suggestions that McLaren may have the upper hand in Monaco this weekend, Felipe Massa says that he and Ferrari are preparing to continue their recent run of success.
Support for McLaren's return to form comes from former pilot Fernando Alonso, who suggested that, based on the team's 2007 1-2, silver may be the colour to back this weekend, but Massa insists that Ferrari, which struggled with its longer wheelbase F2007 in Monaco last season, will be a stronger force in opposition.
"In the past two years, maybe even more, we had some ideas on the set-up and always brought a similar set-up here," the Brazilian said, "I think, last year, after this race, we were working very hard with different strategies on the set-up and how to improve the mechanical grip on the car because, [while] downforce is very important, so also are mechanical grip and traction. It is so important to maybe gain lightly in every corner so, at the end of the lap, you can gain a lot. We have worked a bit differently, so hopefully we can have a good result."
Massa comes to Monaco - which he openly admits is not one of his favourite venues - having taken victory in two of the past three rounds, hauling himself back into title contention as a result.
"I feel very motivated, and I want to keep the momentum which was fantastic in the last three races," he admitted, "We need to keep the same focus. If it is possible to win, we need to do everything we can but, if it is not possible, we need to finish in a good position and bring home as many points as we can. We know that can be very important at the end of the season.
"As I've said, I prefer tracks, like Turkey or Spa, with quick corners - real tracks. I don't like Monaco, and I am not having fun driving here, but that doesn't mean I can't be competitive. I have had some very good races [here] and I want to keep scoring a lot of points, and I think we can have a chance to fight again this race. We need to wait for the first sessions to have a small idea how it is going to be in qualifying and the race, but I am 100 per cent motivated and want to fight for the victory again."
Although he won in Turkey two weeks ago, Massa knows that he was given a fright by McLaren, with Lewis Hamilton finishing what he claimed was his 'best ever race' in second position. The Briton claimed a similar result on his Monaco F1 debut last season, and Massa discounts any suggestion that he may succumb to the pressure of being favourite for victory this weekend.
"McLaren will certainly be very competitive, as they were in the last race - it was pretty close between both Ferraris and both McLarens," he claimed, "I don't think it changes a lot if you're under pressure or not. I was under pressure in Bahrain and I won the race. It doesn't matter. If you have a good car, you always have good possibilities to win races."
