Massa hospitalised after shunt.

Sauber's Felipe Massa is likely to spend part of the night in a Montreal hospital after crashing out of the final stages of the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The Brazilian made heavy contact with the tyre barrier at turn ten, having gone straight on at the corner following a mechanical failure on his car. The team remains unclear as the actual cause of the shunt, but believes it was caused by a problem with the wheel, suspension or brakes.

Although he was helped gingerly from the remains of his car, Massa was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after complaining of pain from his arm.

"I have no idea what happened - I was just a passenger," the Brazilian said, "I'm okay and am fortunate that the car is strong. I'm only going to the hospital for a precautionary check-up on my left elbow.

"Before the accident, I was having a strong race, after catching and passing Sato, Glock, Klien and da Matta. I lost a lot of time in my first pit-stop because of a problem
with the left rear wheel and, later, I also had some trouble with the steering wheel. Then I had the accident."

Team boss Peter Sauber confirmed that Massa's initial progress from the ninth row of the grid had been thwarted by technical gremlins, and said that the squad would be looking closely at possible caused for his crash.

"Felipe fought with technical problems all weekend," Sauber said, "and I apologise for giving him a difficult car. We are all relieved that he was unharmed after his accident in the closing stages. We are still investigating the cause."

Massa has just four days to recover from any injury before the USGP weekend begins at Indianapolis next Friday, but expects to be fit.