Felipe Massa's heavy crash during FP1 for the Canadian Grand Prix was caused by a DRS problem, Williams has confirmed.
Early in the session, Massa lost control approaching Turn 1, causing him to take to the grass in the braking area. With the Williams pitched into a spin, Massa slid backwards into the tyre barrier and heavily damaged the rear of his car.
The Brazilian took to team radio after the crash to say: "I think I had a problem, I closed the DRS and lost the rear completely".
Williams has now confirmed the incident was caused by a problem with Massa's DRS, which did not close fully under braking for Turn 1.
Massa's team-mate Valtteri Bottas had no such problems during the opening session and was able to complete the most mileage of any driver as Williams attempted to compensate for the lost data in FP1.
AS IT HAPPENED: Canadian Grand Prix FP1
Silbermann says ... The world's your lobster
Romain Grosjean column: Racing on two wheels
Chris Medland's 2016 Canadian Grand Prix preview
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
The F1 paddock is obviously well-versed in cutting-edge technology, but former Red Bull motorsport boss…
Bernard Charles Ecclestone turns 96 on this day, and the former F1 supremo still looks…
Is Aston Martin contemplating an unexpected escape route from its troubled Honda partnership? Paddock whispers…
Nico Hulkenberg was left counting another near-miss in Austin as Audi’s frustrating habit of finishing…
Alpine will hand longstanding academy member and F2 charger Gabriele Mini his maiden FP1 outing…
Toto Wolff has brushed aside Helmut Marko’s gloomy verdict on George Russell’s F1 future and…