Felipe Massa today claimed that he is not Ferrari's number two driver - despite opting to move over to allow his team-mate to win the German Grand Prix last Sunday. Not only that, he claims he is aiming for victory this weekend in Hungary. 

"We all know that sometimes, you go through difficult times, but you learn from them, move forward and I feel very strong and I will be looking for the win this weekend,” he stated.

Since Hockenheim, where he obeyed a team order to let Fernando Alonso win, Brazilian cartoonists have depicted Massa as a puppet.

"People will see him now as a 'yes man' who bends to the will of the company," David Coulthard wrote in his latest Telegraph column. "And maybe they are right. Team player or stooge? The line is thin."

Mercedes' Norbert Haug said at a pre-race press conference in Hungary that the application of a driver hierarchy can affect motivation.

"If you say 'you are number two' it's a complex issue," said the German. "If the drivers are not fully motivated you will not achieve anything. That needs to be kept in mind."

Massa told reporters at the Hungaroring that he is aiming to win this weekend's race, where last year he suffered life-threatening injuries in a qualifying crash.

"I am not working for my team-mate, I am working for my team and if I ever feel I am a number two driver in a team, that will be the day I stop racing.”