No let-up in Ferrari-McLaren rivalry

Sakhir, Bahrain: The Ferraris and McLarens hope to be even better and more competitive when they meet in less than a month for the fourth round of the Formula One World Championship in Barcelona.

"This is a good break, and I at least have the consolation of going in the break with a win. It is a nice feeling to have instead of having the constant pressure from the media that we have not lived up to expectations," Massa said after his first win of the season.

His teammate Kimi Raikkonen had won the season opener in Melbourne, while defending world champion Fernando Alonso took the top honours in Kuala Lumpur last week.

"Every result is important for me and for Kimi and for the team. We are aware that we have to work hard to go ahead of the McLarens, who will also be working hard to see how they can improve," Massa stated.

Sure way

Massa felt that a sure way of staying ahead of the opposition, especially the McLarens raced by Alonso and Hamilton, is to brew up a friendly rivalry between the Ferrari team drivers.

"If we are fighting between us then it is best for the Ferrari team. We need to be tough against each other, but in a friendly way, and hopefully we can keep going like that and bag both the titles at the end of the season," Massa hoped.

Just as easy

But it will be as easy the Brazilian thinks as the McLarens plan to do something special during the short break till the next race in Barcelona on May 11-13.

"For the time-being I am really happy for the team. We will use this short break to take some more steps and see how we can become even more competitive for the remainder of the season," Hamilton cautioned.