As the controversy over last weekend's German Grand Prix continues, the man at the heart of it, Felipe Massa, claims that he is not Ferrari's number two driver and would retire if he thought that were the case.

Returning to the scene of the accident which threatened to end his career, Massa was asked if last weekend's incident - which saw him move aside for teammate Fernando Alonso - meant he was now the Maranello outfit's number two.

"I will fight for the victory here, whatever the conditions," he told reporters at the official press conference. "The time I say that I am a number two driver, I will not race any more.

"I want the best for the team," he added. "I am not here really just to race. I am here to win. That's really my point. As long as I am in the condition to win, we need to go to the end, to fight for the victory."

When it was suggested that in deferring to his Spanish teammate he had, in effect, betrayed his country, Massa snapped back: "I will do everything I can always for my country. For me, my country is the most important thing. I have proved already many times in my life, what I am able to do for my country."

Just a few feet away sat Rubens Barrichello, a driver who fully understands what his countryman is going through.

"I was very sorry to see that he had to go through such a bad thing," said the Brazilian veteran. "Nobody should have to go through those feelings. Felipe is a friend and I wish he didn't go through that."

Ironically, it was a spring on Barrichello's car that worked loose and fell on to the track bouncing along and finally hitting Massa just above the left eye during qualifying for last year's race. Asked about the incident, the Ferrari driver said: "To be honest, I don't remember a single thing from the accident. When you close the visor you don't think about these things. You just think about doing your best.

"I am pretty sure that Rubens has a very, very strong spring now on his car," he added smiling. To which Barrichello responded: "I don't feel he will fear anything. Three or four months ago we were playing poker back in Brazil and he just said, 'I have a surprise for you' and he put the helmet that he had the accident in on the table. It destroyed my night, and I started losing money. I think he's going to drive flat out."