Massa saddened by attacks on F1 personnel in Brazil

A number of Mercedes crew were subject to an armed robbery near the track on Friday night, with Williams and FIA personnel also coming face-to-face with gun-carrying criminals.

On Saturday night, robbers tried to stop a minibus carrying Sauber team members, but the crew's driver was able to escape.

#F1 Be careful leaving circuit even with added security. Just got hit by one car trying to make us stop with another ahead. Even left at an odd time (late) and they either followed or were alerted of a van headed that way past the end of the police presence near track. #BrasilGP pic.twitter.com/pPAmUgTvNy

— Ruth Buscombe (@RuthBuscombe) November 12, 2017

Although Brazilian Grand Prix organisers have promised "heavy" police reinforcements for race day, the number of problems faced by personnel over the weekend has increased pressure on F1 and race organisers to improve the situation in the future.

Massa, who is from Sao Paulo, said he was especially upset by the events that had happened over the past few days

Asked if he was ashamed for Brazil, he said: "Undoubtedly, I think we all feel like this. We always expect the best for our country.

"A safe country that we can educate our children, good hospitals and when we hear problems like this, it is very sad. Because you are Brazilian, you are feeling part of the problem.

"So it is a great sadness, not only for people who came and were there, but also for those who hear this and are Brazilian. In the future we can change this."

Lessons not learned

Lewis Hamilton remains upset by what happened to his team members, as he said it was disappointing violent incidents like this still happen.

"The most frustrating thing is that I've been in Formula 1 for 10 years and every single year that has happened to somebody in the paddock, and it continues to happen," he said.

"It's an issue I'm sure the government here are fighting, but I think maybe on this weekend, there are protocols that should be put in place to help, like for example when we go to Mexico, which weren't there for these guys.

"So I hope that moving forwards, and I think moving forwards, there will be those. And I think it should be for the whole paddock. That's partly F1's responsibility, but generally the people at the top need to take action to keep everyone safe.

"It's no good just the bosses having security and myself having security. People need to be looked after."

Asked if he was worried by a lack of response from F1 chiefs about the incidents, Hamilton said "I wasn't expecting a response from them.

"I hope there will be meetings held and discussions about the future visits here, so that everyone here in the paddock including you guys are better protected when you come here.

"I hope the future is bright for Sao Paulo, for Brazil, because it's an awesome place."

Additional reporting by  Erick Gabriel