Robert Kubica is one driver many may feel never got to show his full potential in F1.
Bursting onto the scene as Jacques Villeneuve’s replacement in 2006 at BMW, Kubica became the first and to date only Polish driver to race in F1.
Disqualified from his debut race in Hungary, the Pole scored his first podium two races later at Monza. Landing a full-time seat next to Nick Heidfeld for 2007, Kubica quickly showed his talent and speed.
The 40-year-old scored regular points in his first full season as he finished sixth in the standings. He missed the race at Indianapolis after his horror accident at the Canadian Grand Prix.
In 2008, the Pole stepped up another gear as he grabbed seven podiums. Kubica won his only F1 race at Montreal – a year on from his terrifying crash – and subsequently took the lead of the championship.
Kubica went on to finish fourth in 2008 as Lewis Hamilton grabbed his maiden title over Felipe Massa by just one point. Hamilton regarded Kubica as one of his most talented competitors having shared the grid with many two drivers.
Renault were ‘forced’ to hand Robert Kubica his first F1 test in 2005
After BMW regressed in performance in 2009, the team left F1 as Kubica moved to Renault for 2010 – the team he first tested an F1 car with.
The Pole won the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2005. As a reward, he was handed a one-off test in Barcelona in the R25 – the car Fernando Alonso drove to his maiden title.
Speaking with the Motorsport.com Italia YouTube channel, Kubica recalled how ‘absurd’ the test was as he felt Renault were ‘forced’ to test him. The outing came via winning their feeder series, not through an invitation by Renault.
“I smile because it’s really absurd if I think back to the way I went to do my first test in Formula 1″, he said.
“Thanks [to] having won the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2005 and for the winner there was a test with the Formula 1 team with the Formula 1 car. At the time it was the world champion car.
“I remember because I started from Poland and I mean, you probably know the people around me were more tense than me.
“I took it as another adventure in my head. [I] Imagine the team was forced to make me do this test because in the end, it didn’t come from the team let’s say. It’s two different realities.
“[It] is an agreement that probably Renault Sport had organised the championship [with the] Formula 1 team”.
Robert Kubica made a sensational return to F1 in 2018
After finishing eighth in the standings with three podiums in 2010, Kubica left Renault at the end of the season to embark on a career in rallying.
It was here that the 40-year-old suffered a serious accident in 2011. The severity of his injuries put Kubica’s racing career in major doubt.
Fortunately, the Pole would go on to make a full recovery. After continuing in the WRC for a few more years, Kubica made a sensational return to F1 with Williams in 2019.
The 40-year-old did not enjoy much success with the Grove-based outfit as he scored one point in Germany. Kubica returned to the Sauber setup (then Alfa Romeo) to become their test and reserve driver for three seasons.
He made two sub appearances for Kimi Raikkonen at Zandvoort and Monza after the Finn contracted COVID-19, yielding no points. After leaving F1 in 2022, Kubica now competes in WEC for Ferrari’s satellite team AF Corse.
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