Watch: When the Lewis Hamilton-Felipe Massa rivalry led to an off-track confrontation between the two drivers

The Lewis Hamilton-Felipe Massa rivalry has many chapters, most notably their thrilling 2008 title fight which swung in Hamilton's favor on the final lap of the season finale. However, their rivalry also reached a low point in 2011 when the two were involved in a series of on-track collisions.

Following the 2008 season, both McLaren and Ferrari were dethroned by Brawn GP in 2009 and Red Bull in subsequent years until the turbo-hybrid era. The 2008 title rivals were reduced to fighting for occasional wins and podiums in the years following.

The 2011 Formula 1 season saw Sebastian Vettel dominate the championship while Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa struggled to match the performances of their teammates, Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso respectively. Hamilton's fractious campaign was marked by six on-track incidents with old rival Massa.

It kicked off in Monaco where the McLaren driver clashed with his Ferrari rival at the hairpin. The tension escalated at Silverstone where they battled for fourth place on the final lap, resulting in another clash. The third incident unfolded at the Singapore GP, with a qualifying run-in foreshadowing their on-track collision during the race.

On race day, both drivers were fighting for seventh place when Massa overtook Hamilton on the inside. The Briton tried to fight back exiting the corner, with his crossback move puncturing the Ferrari's rear tire and destroying his front wing. He earned a drive-through penalty for the incident.

After the race, while Hamilton was being interviewed, Massa confronted him, visibly frustrated by the earlier incident. Massa grabbed Hamilton's shoulder and sarcastically said, "Good job." The Briton had none of it, telling Massa not to touch him.

"Good Job, bro," Massa said to which Hamilton replied, "Don't touch me, man."

The drama continued in Japan, where the two drivers collided in a chicane while battling for fourth position. The final episode occurred in the Indian GP, where Massa squeezed Hamilton resulting in a contact and prompted a memorable reaction from Rowan Atkinson. This time it was Massa who earned a drive-through penalty.

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Felipe Massa elaborates on confronting Lewis Hamilton in Singapore

Ahead of the Japanese GP, Felipe Massa shed light on how his attempts to speak with Lewis Hamilton privately after the race were ignored. Frustrated by Hamilton's lack of response, Massa decided to confront the McLaren driver publicly in front of the media.

Massa told the BBC that he called out to Hamilton twice while walking past him but received no response. This led Massa to confront Hamilton in front of the media. Although Massa admitted his actions weren't ideal, he reckoned what Hamilton did was 10 times worse.

"I tried to speak to him without the media but he didn’t even turn his head when he passed through, I called him twice. Then when I saw him there I had to say something. For sure I was disappointed, maybe what I did wasn’t the right thing, but what he did was ten times worse."

"Actually, I think he has a problem with me, because I never did anything to him. Everything he did he’s paying for it, not just with me but with other drivers as well. He doesn’t have two problems in this championship, he has many," he added.

Lewis Hamilton ended the season with three victories, finishing fifth in the standings, while his teammate Jenson Button finished second. Massa finished sixth while his teammate Fernando Alonso finished fourth in the standings.