You Ask The Questions: Robert Kubica

You've driven a vast array of cars, in several different disciplines. What was your favourite to drive, and why? – Michael Holden, Bartek, Lewis Keeling

Robert Kubica: “Well, it's a difficult question, because in the end, different categories have different characteristics, and of course Formula 1 is the fastest car I ever drove. So, I would probably split it in some categories. Formula 1, I would say 2008 BMW or even Renault 2005, which was my first F1 test.

“Then, for example, rallies are completely different, giving you different adrenaline. Probably a rally car is the car which gives the most adrenaline, like after the stage, and definitely this would be, from a driving point of view, the DS3 WRC.

“One of the nice cars I also drove, from driveability for example, was the F1 Renault 2010. It was a very nice car to drive, very direct; it was quite nice to be on the limit, it was giving you a good feeling.”

You had a really good lap in Monaco with that car [he qualified on the front row despite Renault finishing fifth in the constructors’ championship that year].

RK: “Yeah, not only Monaco. I would say probably the best lap was Suzuka [in fourth place], where we had also some issues with the floor, diffuser. But I would say those four cars.”

Kubica reckons he had a fantastic lap with the Renault R30 in Suzuka

Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / LAT Images via Getty Images

I believe your 2007 crash to 2008 win with BMW is one of the most fascinating storylines in F1 history. Can you speak to the emotions of that winning weekend with the team, BMW’s decision to leave F1, and if you feel that they, like you, missed out on potential F1 championship opportunities? – Ronan O’Doherty

RK: “Well, in the end there are three questions in one question (chuckles). For sure my first F1 race win was what every F1 driver – not only F1 drivers – wishes to achieve and dreams of, so definitely it was a big highlight of my racing adventure.

“To be honest, for sure there were emotions, but in the end, because you won a first race, but your goal is to keep winning, I didn't stop over too much about this win. Actually, I took the first flight possible to come back to Europe, Tuesday morning I was already in Barcelona, testing. I remember the team asking me if I want to stay and rebook the flight for the day after; I said no, because anyway Monday evening I have to be in Barcelona. They said ‘No, you can skip the day of testing’, I said ‘No, no, we go testing’.

“So in the end, in hindsight after so many years, probably I could or should stay with the team to enjoy a bit more, and also in the end it was big achievement for the team, for the guys, mechanics, everyone involved.

“Regarding the second part, probably that year we had maybe not handled it 100% like I would like. Definitely we focused quite early on the new regulations, on the 2009 car, and yeah, the second part of the year we lost… I mean, in the end, the focus was mainly for 2009.

“And of course, the year after, when after a disappointing first part of the year BMW announced its retirement, it was quite shocking, or surprising, because in the end when you are involved in the team, working with the team, you can feel some decisions or rumour, but there was nothing. I remember going home for the summer break, and then I think at the end of the same week, I think it was Thursday, I got a phone call in the evening that tomorrow morning BMW is announcing its retirement.

“So, of course, it was surprising. Fortunately, I was capable of finding a team for next year, and had quite an established position, so I managed, but such big decisions can have also a negative influence on yourself. Especially that I still had a contract for the year after, so it was not that I was looking around too much for an opportunity to drive somewhere else.”

Kubica was blindsided by BMW's withdrawal from F1 at the end of 2009

Photo by: Getty Images

From your rally accident in 2011, what were the physical and mental challenges you had to overcome and face during your journey to recovery after your accident? – Jack

RK: “This is a long answer, but I’ll try to make it short. Of course, I had a lot of injuries, some managed to recover, some unfortunately stayed permanent. So, my main limitations are, as probably everyone knows, my right arm, my hand, but also in the end not a lot of people know I have quite a damaged right leg which still brings kind of limitations with my feet, with my general stability of the leg and strength of the leg.

“But I managed to overcome, I managed to learn how to live with it, and honestly I'm not thinking anymore like I would do in the past. Let's say my limitation became my daily life and I don't see myself different to before, which was not the case. It took me a long time to accept, adapt. Mentally, actually, it's more about accepting because I had some difficult fights with myself, with my brain, in order to accept my limitations, to accept how I am. Fortunately, I overcame those.

“I think racing did help me a lot. In the end when I started back racing, I felt back home and this was a big boost for my brain and mental strength. But also one important aspect of our brain is that the brain is very powerful tool we have in our body, often underestimated, often underused. And it's incredible how things and how the approach can change, and I call it like we have different stage modes in our brain where depending on what's happening it is adapting extremely quickly to those positives but especially to those negatives where you need to overcome and fight things.”

Kubica answers Autosport readers' questions with Ben Vinel

Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt

Do you want to come back to rallying? If yes, as a serious competitor or to enjoy the sport itself? – Jan

RK: “Probably it’s a Polish guy, Jan!

“Rallying has been one of the most important parts of my recovery, and it played a very important role. It has been extremely challenging years, but in some way also thanks to rallying, I'm back where I am. Probably if I would go back to rallying, my approach would be a lot different. But this is normal because I know what I was living those years, I know that my approach was many times probably very selfish, but in the end it was kind of medicine and reaction of the difficult period I still was overcoming.

“I see myself back in a rally car – probably, as Jan mentioned, not in the full competitive way, although I still struggle to see myself wearing the helmet and not trying to be competitive. These two things are clashing a lot, that's why probably I never came back to rallies because I would like to be back one day but only probably in a more fun way. But I'm still not ready for it.”

The rumour is you had a Ferrari F1 contract lined up; how does it feel to win one of the world’s largest races (Le Mans) as a Ferrari driver? – Dan Flack

RK: “We have to clarify because in the end I'm not a Ferrari driver, I'm racing behind the Ferrari 499P wheel, but I'm an AF Corse driver.

“It's a bit different of course, it's impossible to compare those days where in the end I was on the way to become a Ferrari F1 driver. Nothing to take away from the Hypercar category, but of course when you are in Formula 1, I think as an established driver there are two things which I had always a goal – hopefully one day becoming world champion or an opportunity to fight for it, and second one was to become a Ferrari F1 driver.

“So I didn't achieve [either] of them, I was on the way to become a Ferrari F1 driver, unfortunately because of the accident it didn't happen. You cannot compare them, but I have to say that one of the reasons why at the end of 2023 I decided to drive for AF Corse was that… in previous questions I said I overcame every kind of bad memories I had after my accident; one of the things which was always destabilising myself, or kind of a bit bleeding still, was that one of the biggest regrets probably was that I never managed to sit behind the Ferrari wheel in a F1 car.

Kubica regrets never driving a Ferrari in F1, but at least he got the chance in the WEC

Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt

“Of course there are technical reasons but one of the reasons why I said ‘Yes I will go this direction with AF Corse’ was that probably in the future if I would not go I will regret that I had a chance to drive a Ferrari car in Hypercar and I didn't. So this was also one of the more emotional things than any technical aspects; probably you will never have this kind of thinking, but because there was this bleeding thing still for many years, this was, let's say, my way of thinking.”

As a non-works Ferrari driver, are you involved in the development of the 499P as much as the factory drivers? – Lukasz Powalowski

RK: “I would say no. I think we have all tools to run it like the factory team but of course I'm not involved in any deeper technical aspects. I think I contributed to improving the car, especially back when I joined, which was the second year of the car. I think we saw and I saw some things which we could improve, and I think the feedback was taken, and in fact we did improve a lot of areas which were needed.

“But let’s say, more technical, like deeper feedback, no. But also I don't know how much actually, how big percentage it is of involving factory drivers into the development of the car. Also because in the end it's not like in F1 where you have a development rate which is huge; the regulation is quite different, but we are working in order to understand better the car and improve the car.”

When you returned to F1, what was most surprising when experiencing the new generation of cars for the first time? – Harve DeMovick IV

RK: “Their size! It was a big step. I remember my earliest test with Renault when I came back; my first test after the accident was 2017 in Valencia and actually I drove the 2012 car, which was very similar, size was similar, engine, so I felt back home.

“But then when I went to test the current car in Hungary, in Budapest, everything felt so different. It was actually quite surprising how different it was, but you know, the thing is that normal drivers participating every year, they have gradual differences and stages. There is one, two things which change year by year.

Kubica was shocked by F1 cars' size upon his testing return in 2017

Photo by: Charles Coates / LAT Images via Getty Images

“I got everything in one shot that day, and actually from a driver point of view it's easier to learn from zero – like you have never driven an F1 car – than driving something completely different but you have experienced. You have your own habits, you have your own feelings, and to erase those habits and adapt I think is more difficult than learning from zero. The step was huge. Of course, you adapt to that, but it was a lot of things in one go.”

In 2018 you famously said it's possible to go through a roundabout without touching the steering wheel. Can you elaborate on that? I tried and hit the kerb quite hard! – Alex

RK: “No, it was more about deeper analysis or a deeper way of thinking of my limitation and explaining how I'm managing it. And the exact thing I was referring to is that in the end you don't need a lot of force in order to steer the steering wheel, in the end you need only friction of our skin and the steering wheel. So most of the time I also refer to [the fact that] on the straights most of the drivers - or I do - I relax, I tend to hold the steering wheel but only with very small input because it's wasting energy. So I remember saying something like you can still go around a roundabout without even holding the steering wheel just because of the friction of the palm of your hand, and this is the fact.”

Which race do you consider the best performance of your career? – Mateusz Dondajewski, Liam

RK: “Difficult, probably overall weekend I would say Fuji 2008. It has been probably the maximum really I could get out of it – and way more than expected.”

Thank you, Robert.

RK: “Thank you.”

Kubica finished just second in the 2008 Japanese Grand Prix, but believes it was his best performance ever

Photo by: James Moy / Sutton Images via Getty Images