Dubai: Ask Felipe Massa what's on his mind and he'll tell you how he can't stop thinking of returning to racing action at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
"November 1, Abu Dhabi" is the date and place the Ferrari-driving Brazilian has in mind, but it will have to be seen if he is given the green light and will return to competitive racing on the said date as he recovers from his near-fatal accident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix in July.
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Massa's Ferrari slammed into a protective barrier after his helmet was struck at nearly 160mph by a runaway spring that broke off compatriot Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP car.
The impact caused him to lose consciousness on the spot and he was later diagnosed to have suffered a skull fracture, which he is now recovering from in Brazil. The 28-year-old underwent a successful four-hour plastic surgery procedure on his cranium on Monday and is expected to start physical rehabilitation soon.
Following a medical in Miami last week, Ferrari admitted they are not expecting Massa to race until 2010, but the Brazilian it seems is itching to get back on the track.
"As soon as I get the OK from my doctors I'm going to get back in the car," he told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
"In 2010, it's 100 per cent sure I'm going to race, but it would be a dream to return at Abu Dhabi."
Speaking to the English newspaper The Guardian, he added: "If I don't drive then I am not the same person. I really hope, and expect, nothing will change inside of me when I go back into the car and start pushing to the maximum again. "The worst thing that happened was not being able to race. If you can't drive that's terrible."
Massa had earlier planned to return for his home race at the Brazilian GP, the penultimate race of the season on October 18, but said: "It was the race I wanted to come back in, but it is difficult to say if it would have been possible. That's why I need this surgery to close the bone. I will have it soon because that's the only reason they won't allow me to race now. Otherwise, I feel the same as before.
"I'm going to Europe to use the simulator and drive some go-karts and then I will know very well if I am 100 per cent."