Doctors say it is too early to judge whether Felipe Massa will race again after it was revealed on Monday that the Brazilian suffered damage to his left eye in his Hungarian Grand Prix crash.

Massa is still in hospital recovering from a skull fracture and concussion after he was hit in the face by a spring from Rubens Barrichello's car.

Local media quoted the hospital's professor Robert Veres from Budapest as saying that the eye injury could be enough to end Massa's F1 career.

"He has suffered some damage to the eye," said Veres. "We don't know whether he'll be able to race again."

The AEK hospital in Budapest is scheduled to hold a press conference this evening to update the media on Massa's injuries.

The spring struck Massa just above his left eye, smashing his helmet and fracturing his skull.

Doctors also confirmed on Monday that the operation that was conducted on Saturday afternoon saved Massa's life.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo visited Massa in hospital on Monday.

'No doubt' that Felipe Massa will race again, says driver's doctor

• Massa has taken his first steps since fracturing his skull
• Brazilian to stay in hospital 'for the next few days'

• Wednesday 29 July 2009 15.40 BST

A Hungarian fan shows her support for the Ferrari driver Felipe Massa in front of Budapest's AEK hospital. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Felipe Massa has been moved out of intensive care, with his personal doctor now convinced he will race again.

Massa's rapid improvement since undergoing surgery on Saturday to repair a fractured skull has prompted doctors at the AEK military hospital in Budapest to move the Brazilian to his own private room.

It means Massa is now off the critical list, although the 28-year-old will continue to be closely monitored. On Monday there were fears he may never drive again due to damage to his left eye, but Massa's progress has convinced his own doctor, Dino Altmann, that the Ferrari star's career is far from over.

Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, Altmann said: "I have no doubt Felipe will race again. I'm sure of that. The situation is still delicate but ... from the beginning I felt the trauma wasn't as extended as it was believed but the improvements have gone beyond our wildest expectations."

Altmann believes fears surrounding Massa's left eye, damaged after he was struck on the helmet at 162mph by a suspension spring that had worked free from Rubens Barrichello's Brawn during qualifying on Saturday, have eased.

"Stimulated by the physiotherapist, he showed he knows left from right and has full awareness of distance and depth," added Altmann. "His eye has been opened, with care because it is still swollen, and he has said he can see. His vision has not weakened. He also gave appropriate answers in three languages: Portuguese, Italian and English. That means the brain's cognitive area is fine."

The Ferrari team principal, Stefano Domenicali, has been amazed by the rate of recovery, prompting him to return to Italy yesterday.

"It's a fantastic improvement. Only days after the crash he's made encouraging progress," said Domenicali. "He recognised me, I greeted him and I brought him all the team's and the fans' warmth and support.

"He replied to me in Italian, after he had spoken to his family in Portuguese. He told me he can't remember anything that had happened: that's a good thing. The data is encouraging but in these situations it's better to be prudent and take one step at a time. We want him to recover as soon as possible."

Domenicali has confirmed there are no issues surrounding Massa's return, with the seat being kept warm until he is fit again. "I confirmed to him we are looking forward to his return soon, that the car is his, and that as soon as he's ready he'll be back with us."

Barrichello, who is in America with his family, remarked on his Twitter feed his delight at Massa's improvement. "Good morning, and a very good morning indeed – Felipe can walk and talks normally."

Massa's friend and fellow Brazilian driver Popo Bueno said Massa had asked about his chances of racing in Valencia in three weeks, the next grand prix on the Formula One calendar.

"Friends and relatives want to see him well, at home, healthy but the driver always wants to return to racing soon," Bueno said. "But only the doctors can know if he will be able to return this year or the next."

Kimi Raikkonen has not telephoned or visited Felipe Massa since his Ferrari teammate was injured at the Hungarian Grand Prix last month.

"Kimi has not called but I saw a video made by Sky (television) with all the drivers. He sent me a card to the hospital," Massa, 28, told Brazilian reporters on Monday.

Massa, however, said Raikkonen's silence is "no problem" since the Finn is a "unique person".

Michael Schumacher has been in contact with the Brazilian since he had to call off his sensational Valencia comeback, Massa revealed.

"He told me had had pain in his neck when the car drove over bumps on the circuit," Massa said.

Recent speculation has hinted at a return for Massa at the Italian grandprix next month, but the driver instead said he is simply hoping to come back before the end of the season.

"I'm still not 100 per cent and my sight in the left eye still isn't 100 per cent," Massa insisted. "I'm about 85, 90 per cent recovered. There is still a bit to go before I'm back to normal."

He said his convalescence at present is "boring" because he is not allowed to do any physical training, and revealed that he will have some cosmetic surgery to correct his facial scar.

Ferrari has said that Felipe Massa will be fully fit for the start of next season, but he won’t be able to return to the track this season, as had been hoped.

The Brazilian had a series of medical checks in Miami on Monday, overseen by Steve Olvey.

Ferrari had been waiting for firm news on its injured driver before deciding on its plans for the remainder of the season. Now that it knows that it has to fill the vacant seat for all five races, there will clearly be a major effort to secure the best possible candidate for the drive.

Giancarlo Fisichella remains favorite, but the Renault scandal has opened up the possibility of Fernado Alonso becoming available should the team face a ban from the later races of the year – unless he too is implicated by the FIA.

A statement on Ferrari’s website read as follows: ‘It was a long day yesterday for Felipe Massa, seen by doctors. The Ferrari driver flew to Miami on Sunday for some important check-ups carried out by Professor Stephen Olvey, Head of the Jackson Memorial Hospital Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit.

‘The checks (neurometric and impact tests, cognitive capacity tests) all had a positive outcome, just like the eye exam: everything is in order for Felipe to get back to racing. Now there has just to be carried out some plastic surgery at the brain box, where the spring at the accident at the Hungaroring hit his helmet. The surgery will take place in the upcoming days. After a short convalescence Felipe can then gradually start with physical preparations.

“I’m very happy about the results,” Felipe told the official Ferrari website before boarding the plane back to Sao Paulo. “After the small surgery in the next days I can finally start to go to the gym to get back into shape and drive some tests in karts. On the track with a Formula 1 single-seater? Let’s take it step by step: at the moment I’m concentrating on taking up physical activities, which is a great step forward.”

‘Naturally the results were received with great joy and satisfaction at Maranello with the prospect to be able to count on Felipe 100% for the start of the next racing season.’