As an amateur, Massi won many races, and when he became a professional cyclist in 1987, much was expected from him.[1] In 1988, he broke a leg, and after the operation, one of his legs was a few centimeters shorter than the other. Massi often complained that he was not able to cycle in a regular way, and became a domestique for many different teams.[1]
In 1998, he had his best year. He won the Tour Méditerranéen and the Giro di Calabria.[1] In the Tour de France, he won a mountain stage, and after the 16th stage was in seventh place in the general classification, and leading the mountains classification, when corticoids were found in his hotel room.[2] He was questioned by the police, and was not able to start the next stage. Massi was the first rider in history to be arrested for breaking doping laws.[3] Later, all legal charges against him were dropped,[4] but the Italian Olympic Committee banned him for six months.[5]
