The Brazilian still has an opportunity to stay on as a Ferrari driver for another season, despite the disappointing form that has seen him fail to finish on the podium since the German Grand Prix in 2010.
His team mate, Fernando Alonso, is leading the championship and Massa is currently 139 points behind the Spaniard in the 2012 standings.
Despite Alonso holding a 40 point cushion over Red Bull's Mark Webber in the drivers' title chase, Ferrari is only fourth in the constructors' standings, 57 points behind leader Red Bull Racing and with the Italian team admitting that Lotus, McLaren and Red Bull all have faster cars at the moment, team principal Domenicali said this was a critical moment for Massa to raise his game.
Domenicali said: "I think Felipe knows what he has to do. He needs to maximise the performance that he can because we need his capabilities behind the wheel. We need points to try to attack first place in the constructors' championship, and also to take away points from the other drivers in the drivers' championship."
"He knows that he has in front of him some very important races for him as a driver and also as a team member for Ferrari."
The Ferrari team boss added that Ferrari acknowledged it could also help its struggling driver by providing a quicker car.
"We need to improve the car and I'm sure he can do a good job," he added.
The situation regarding Ferrari's second driver for next year stays unclear. The team held talks with Red Bull Racing driver Mark Webber before he re-signed for Red Bull, and talk of a promotion for its protege Sauber's Sergio Perez after his early-season podiums has cooled.
Domenicali stated that Ferrari did not feel under any pressure to commit to a 2013 line-up yet.
"There is no rush on our decision," the Italian insisted.
Tweet