Felipe Massa felt a victory was possible at the Baku City Circuit on Sunday but for a damper issue to end his afternoon when in a strong third place.
With Lewis Hamilton soon after being forced to pit thanks to a lose headrest and Sebastian Vettel taking a ten-second stop and go penalty for dangerous driving, Massa would only have had eventual race winner Daniel Ricciardo to battle for the victory.
The Brazilian had driven superbly but a suspension issue on his Williams Martini Racing machine saw him fall rapidly down the field on the restart following the mid-race red flag, before he pulled into the pits to retire.
“I’m so disappointed about the result today,” said Massa. “The race was going perfectly. I was overtaking cars and I had really good pace.
“On the restart the car just started shaking on the straight and I didn’t have the speed, other cars were passing me so easily. I also couldn’t do the corners because it was shaking so badly.
“Today we had the opportunity to have both cars on the podium, and maybe even a victory. I do want to say a massive congratulations to Lance [Stroll]. I’m so happy for him getting his first ever podium in Formula 1.”
