Robert Kubica makes F1 return with Renault at Hungary Test
Written by News on 02/08/2017
Robert Kubica posted Renault’s best time of the Hungary Test as he completed over 100 laps on his first appearance in a 2017 car.
The Pole posted a best time of 1:19.681 on Wednesday morning on his first public run in F1 since suffering career-changing injuries in a rally crash in 2011.
That time was almost seven tenths quicker than that set by development driver Nicholas Latifi on Tuesday and left him seventh on the timesheet at the lunch break on Wednesday.
While fuel levels in testing are unknown, Kubica’s lap was nearly two seconds quicker than the fastest race laps of Renault’s current drivers Jolyon Palmer and Nico Hulkenberg in Sunday’s Hungarian GP.
Kubica’s best time was set on the seventh lap of a 10-lap run on supersofts and also left him 1.2 seconds off Palmer’s Hungarian GP qualifying time on the same tyre.
In total, the 32-year-old improved by over 4.5 seconds over the course of the morning, having posted a 1:24.299 on his opening timed lap.
Picture special: Kubica returns
Kubica’s performance on Wednesday is seen as the final measure as to whether he will be able to make a full return to the sport in 2018.
The Pole has driven Renault’s 2012 car twice already this year in private tests but this is his first public run in F1 since his rally accident in February 2011.
On announcing his participation in the test, Renault confirmed it was in order to determine whether "it would be possible for Robert to return to competition in the upcoming years".
The 32-year-old completed the FIA’s mandatory extraction test at the start of the week, overcoming fears the severe injuries he suffered to his right arm would hamper his ability to exit an F1 car in under five seconds.
The former BMW and Lotus driver was widely tipped as a future world champion before his one-off participation in an Italian rally between pre-season F1 tests dramatically changed the course of his career.
Kubica: The comeback story so far
Just three days after setting the pace at 2011’s opening pre-season test, Kubica crashed into a church wall during the Ronde di Andora rally and suffered extensive damage to his right hand, arm and leg. He underwent several hours of surgery and suffered a partial amputation of his forearm.
With the restricted movement of his arm initially prohibiting him from driving a single-seater again, Kubica made his competitive return in World Rally in 2013 before racing on circuits again last year.
In June, Kubica drove 115 laps in a private test at Valencia in the 2012 E20 car before completing 90 laps at Paul Ricard on the Wednesday before the British GP in a test which was designed "to extensively evaluate his driving capabilities".
Between those two tests, Kubica told Sky F1 he was targeting a "proper comeback" after being encouraged by his performance in his first comeback in Valencia.
Don’t miss the F1 Report on Wednesday at 8.30pm on Sky F1 as Formula 2 driver Jordan King and Craig Slater join Natalie Pinkham to review the Hungarian GP.
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(c) Sky News 2017: Robert Kubica makes F1 return with Renault at Hungary Test
