Kubica back in the saddle
SPORT
ROBERT KUBICA had his first official Formula One outing for more than six years yesterday as the Polish driver took a major step on his remarkable comeback trail.
Kubica completed 142 laps over 20 runs – the equivalent of more than two race distances at the Hungaroring – to finish an impressive fourth in the order in his first drive in this year’s Renault.
The 32-year-old partially severed his right arm in a rally crash in 2011, which brought a sudden halt to a grand-prix career that had seen him earmarked as a future champion.
Kubica appeared to show no ill-effects of the injury in his first official test in an F1 car for 2,372 days as he posted a credible 1min 18.572secs.
That was 1.448secs adrift of Sebastian Vettel, who was fastest in the Ferrari.
Kubica, who won the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, was cheered on by a large army of Polish fans, who chanted his name on the concluding day of this week’s test.
“It was a fantastic feeling for me to be here today and it was amazing to see so many fans come to see me out on track, so thank you to all of them,” said Kubica. “It has been an incredible journey to this point, where I have answered many questions to myself.
“I learnt a lot about the latest generation car, as there is a reasonable amount of differences between it and the Formula One cars I have driven in the past.
“After today, it’s too early to say what the next step might be. For now, I owe a big thanks to everyone at Renault Sport Formula One team for making this test happen.”
“It’s great to see him back,” said Vettel, who leads Lewis Hamilton by 14 points in the championship race.
“There was never a doubt about his talent, his speed and his ability to drive the car. The cars are different this year, which should suit his style.”
Kubica’s day had a shaky start after he brushed Renault’s garage wall with his right back tyre as he left the pits.
The force of the impact dislodged a sign displaying Renault driver Nico Hulkenberg’s name above the garage but, after a small pause, Kubica carried on.