Massa to play it safe

Felipe Massa has revealed he is unlikely to take risks over the next few weeks knowing his future at Ferrari is on the line.

Massa is currently in the dark as to whether he will be handed a new deal by Ferrari for next year following a wretched season.

The Brazilian scored just 11 points in the opening eight races, and although there has been an improvement with 36 points collected from the last five grands prix, the uncertainty remains.

It is now known Ferrari held talks with Mark Webber earlier this year prior to the Australian committing himself to Red Bull for 2013.

As a Ferrari academy driver, Sauber's Sergio Perez has long been linked, only for president Luca di Montezemolo to again recently state the Mexican lacks experience.

It means Massa is still in with a shout of hanging on to his seat as support act to championship leader Fernando Alonso.

Massa appreciates what he needs to do for the next seven long-haul races crammed into the 10 weeks, starting this Sunday in Singapore.

"There is no news on my future at the moment, but there's no doubt good results will help," said Massa.

"I just need to keep pushing hard and getting good results in the hope of hearing some good news soon.

"It's always better to know what the situation is, as of course I want to know what I'm doing next year.

"But I can tell you it's never happened that I'm in the car in the middle of a race and I start thinking about what I'll do next year."

Speaking to Ferrari's official website, Massa added: "However, I know that results are what matter.

"So if the situation arises where you have to take a risk in the race, then you have to think carefully about it, as you know your priority is to finish the race."