Massa ‘could be jailed’ if he lets Alonso past in Brazil

With five drivers still vying for the Formula 1 title the issue of team orders has come to the fore in bizarre fashion in the run-up to the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Local hero Felipe Massa has been warned that he could be jailed if he refuses to race against his team mate and championship leader Fernando Alonso.

In Germany earlier this year Massa was ordered to let Alonso overtake him so the Spaniard could collect maximum points, prompting a huge row over team orders - supposedly banned in F1 - which resulted in a fine for the Ferarri team. But with the precedent set and Alonso in a position to clinch the title in Brazil there is little doubt Massa would let Alonso through again.

But now he has been told that such a move could have serious repercussions. Paulo Castilho, a prosecutor in Brazil's Special Criminal Court, announced that Massa "will have to leave Interlagos in handcuffs" if he lets his fans down by getting out of Alonso's way, citing a special statute which protects the rights of fans to expect to see honest competition.

 
Such a scenario is surely beyond the realms of possibility even in this strangest of F1 seasons. However, there is plenty of other drama going on in the paddock in the run up to the race.

Australian Mark Webber, who lead the championship for much of this season, has angrily claimed that his Red Bull team are still backing Sebastian Vettel ahead of him and that he is seen as "inconvenient".

Webber is the main challenger to Alonso, and is just 14 points behind him, yet the Australian veteran feels his success has gone against the wishes of his team who would have preferred the up-and-coming youngster Vettel to be their front-runner. The row has been simmering all season and a clearly bitter Webber said of his team's attitude: "Fucking obvious isn't it? When young, new charges come on to the block that's where the emotion is. That's the way it is."

Asked if Vettel, who is 11 points behind his team-mate, would be supporting him in Sunday's race, Webber replied: "If it hasn't happened by now, it's never going to happen. Nothing has changed between Seb and I over the last five or six races. The only thing different is that Fernando [Alonso] is leading."

Sparks are also flying in the McLaren camp as Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button will be given free rein to compete against each other as they both try to maintain their fading title hopes.

It seems that McLaren hopes the healthy rivalry between the pair will inspire them to great things in Brazil. "I've not had any battles with Jenson this year and we have been dying to have that battle," said Hamilton.

Earlier Button had said he had no intention of acting as support driver to Hamilton until it was mathematically impossible for him to win the title. ·