Massa: 'The time I say I'm a No 2 driver, I will not race anymore'

Felipe Massa denied yesterday that he was Ferrari's No 2 driver and said he was out to win in Hungary this weekend. The Brazilian was at the centre of a row over "team orders" at last Sunday's German Grand Prix when he moved over to let team-mate Fernando Alonso win after receiving a radio message while leading the race.

"Yes, I will fight for the victory here, whatever the conditions," Massa said on his return to the Hungaroring Formula One circuit where last year he suffered life-threatening head injuries.

Asked if he would therefore react differently if he found himself in the same position as last weekend, he replied: "I will win. The time I say that I am a No 2 driver, I will not race any more."

Alonso is fifth overall in the world championship standings, 34 points behind McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, while Massa is eighth and a further 38 back.

Massa said what had happened at Hockenheim made him even stronger as a person and he bristled at a suggestion from a Brazilian reporter that he had betrayed his country by obeying the orders. "I will do everything I can always for my country," he said.