I wanted to leave F1 with my head up - Massa

Felipe Massa says he wanted to leave F1 with his head held high after announcing his retirement from the sport.

The Williams driver announced 2016 will be his last season in F1 on Thursday, following a 15-year career which also included spells at Sauber and Ferrari. The 11-time grand prix winner will retire at the age of 35 and he says the way the sport is going allied to a desire to leave on his own terms contributed to his decision.

“These cars have something to do with everything, your position in the championship, your performance, some things around Formula 1, some rules, it’s part of that," Massa said.

“Also the time, I have been here for 15 years, so I want to leave this paddock with my head up, not down, which is very important, that’s the way I am and the way I want to be, and also remembered. So there are so many different points you put up, and then I decided.”

And Massa admits he even considered retiring when he was released by Ferrari at the end of 2013 before signing for Williams, where he has scored five podiums in the past three years.

"I was thinking to do myself three years ago. When I was sure that this was going to be the time, you need to be strong enough to decide things that are sometimes quite difficult, which is what I did.

“I'm relieved and happy with what I'm doing. It happens this year, I think this year was the time to do that. I feel relief and happy to do that in this moment."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.