Formula E: Felipe Massa signs three-year deal with Venturi

By Asher Fair | May 16, 2018

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - NOVEMBER 12: Felipe Massa of Brazil and Williams smiles on the drivers parade before the Formula One Grand Prix of Brazil at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace on November 12, 2017 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images) /

Former Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa has signed a three-year deal to drive for Venturi in Formula E starting in the 2018-2019 season.

Formula Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa, who has retired from Formula 1 twice since the end of the 2016 season, is set to drive in Formula E starting in the 2018-2019 season, as he has just signed a three-year deal with Venturi.

Current Formula E drivers who are former Formula 1 drivers include Lucas di Grassi, Jean-Eric Vergne, Sebastien Buemi, Jerome d’Ambrosio, Kamui Kobayashi, Andre Lotterer, Stephane Sarrazin and Nick Heidfeld. Neel Jani, Nico Prost, Oliver Turvey, Luca Filippi, Ma Qing Hua, Antonio Felix da Costa and Jose Maria Lopez have also test driven in Formula 1.

Massa spent 15 seasons as a Formula 1 driver before officially retiring from the sport following the conclusion of the 2017 season.

The 37-year-old Brazilian, who won the 1999 Formula Chevrolet Brazil championship, the 2000 Formula Renault 2000 Eurocup championship, the 2000 Formula Renault 2000 Italy championship and the 2001 Euro Formula 3000 championship prior to joining Formula 1 in the 2002 season as a driver for Sauber Petronas, “retired” following the 2016 Formula 1 season as well.

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Lance Stroll was set to replace Massa at Williams Martini Racing to join Valtteri Bottas in the 2017 season. However, 2016 Formula 1 champion Nico Rosberg unexpectedly announced his retirement after the season, thus leaving Lewis Hamilton without a teammate at Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport.

Bottas ended up going to Mercedes to join Hamilton, and Massa ended up returning to Williams for one more season and joining Stroll, who was initially intended to be his replacement. Following his second and official retirement following the conclusion of the 2017 season, Massa was replaced by Sergey Sirotkin at Williams.

In his Formula 1 career, Massa drove for Sauber (2002, 2004 and 2005), Scuderia Ferrari (2003 as a test driver and 2006 to 2013), and Williams (2014 to 2017). He won 11 races, with six of those victories coming in the 2008 season during which he almost won the championship for Ferrari. All 11 of those victories came in the 2006 season, the 2007 season and the 2008 season.

Massa’s career-high finish in the Formula 1 championship standings was second place in the 2008 season. He lost the championship in heartbreaking fashion to Lewis Hamilton. Here is a video of the closing laps of the 2008 season finale, which was Massa’s home race, the Brazilian Grand Prix.

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Are you excited to see that Felipe Massa has signed a three-year deal to compete for Venturi in Formula E starting in the 2018-2019 season? Will he have success driving for the team during his tenure there?