Mat Coch writes:

On his day he's as quick as anyone, the only problem is that for Felipe Massa he hasn't had many days in recent years.

The Brazilian came within seconds of claiming the 2008 world championship, winning his home event in difficult wet conditions. That rainy day in November was his last Grand Prix victory. After the six wins of that 2008 campaign he has stood on the podium just eight times since; three second places and five thirds.

It was no secret the Brazilian struggled to regain his confidence after being hit by a spring during qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix. It ruled him out for the rest of the season, and for a long time it looked to have taken his edge as a driver.

However, during the latter half of 2012 Massa re-found his mojo. Second in Japan and third in front of his home crowd in Brazil were his first podiums since 2010. At last weekend's Australian Grand Prix the 31-year-old looked a chance for victory early on, an almost alien position for him in recent years.

"Everything is much better," he said ahead of this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix. "We showed a completely different performance compared with last year in Australia during qualifying and practice."

Understanding the new car has made Massa more comfortable and confident. The early struggles of the difficult 2012 car are a distant memory as the Brazilian focuses on the job at hand.

"I feel happy and I am also in a much better shape compared with how we started last year," he said. "This year everything is more consistent.

"We understand the car a lot more so the car is much easier to drive. I think everybody's working and understands everything that's happening. This is pretty good for the team, but it's pretty good for me."