Grapevine: Zanardi Ready for Racing Return

Alex Zanardi will complete an incredible comeback on Sunday when he returns to competitive racing just two years and one month after losing his legs in an horrific 200mph smash.

Italian Zanardi had both his legs amputated after colliding with Alex Tagliani in the German 500 CART race in 2001. But he will return to motor racing in a specially designed BMW European Touring Car at Monza on Sunday to complete a remarkable comeback.

"Two years ago I escaped death by a whisker," said Zanardi, 36, who walks with the use of prosthetic limbs. "Although the situation was really bad at the time, I set myself the goal of leading a normal life again at some time in the future.

"Today, I can walk, I swim, I go skiing, and now I will complete my vision by competing seriously in a race. I should like to thank the entire BMW Team Italy for this fantastic opportunity.

"I believe that sometimes in life it's difficult to regain your courage after a stroke of bad luck. If I manage to keep pace in Monza, I shall have reaffirmed my faith in myself. Where there's a will, there's a way."

Zanardi, who raced in Formula One with Williams but enjoyed more success and won two titles in the United States-based CART championship, had been leading the race at the Lausitzring in 2001 before his horrific crash.

He had pitted with 13 laps of the race remaining but as he rejoined the race he lost control and spun into the path of Tagliani, who hit Zanardi's car just ahead of the cockpit. The car disintegrated around the Italian driver's legs and he was knocked unconscious. Astonishingly, despite being given his last rites, he recovered and returned to his home in Monaco.

Since then, he has been training every day to regain fitness. He returned to the Lausitzring this year for a demonstration run in a specially modified CART machine and is determined to put up a strong performance in Sunday's race.

The one-off appearance had been made possible by Zanardi's brave battling spirit and his former Formula 3000 engineer Roberto Trevisan, now at Ravaglia Motorsport, who convinced the team to modify the machine for Zanardi to race.

The car's throttle has been moved to the steering wheel so that Zanardi can use his left hand to operate it while he uses his right to operate the gear lever and brakes with one of his prosthetic legs.

He drove the car in a test at Monza last month and Ravaglia said: "His performance is particularly impressive when you reflect on the obvious difficulties and the lack of training."

BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen is confident he will do a good job.

"It's an honour for us that Alex is able to make his dream come true and we are extremely happy to provide him with the support of all our expertise," Theissen said. "His project reflects the BMW Motorsport philosophy of always searching for new frontiers.

"Whatever the result of the race, Alex has already won through as far as I'm concerned."