Zanardi prepares to walk again

Zanardi, who collided with Alex Tagliani at close to 200mph during September's German 500, has been in training since leaving hospital at the end of October, ready to be fitted with prosthetic limbs. The treatment is expected to take up to three months before he is back to almost full mobility with his new legs, but he is not afraid of the task ahead.

"I was scheduled to take my first steps in the second week of December, but for me that's late," said Zanardi. "I was ready a month ago. It will be like a job, from nine to five every day, as I learn to walk again.

"They have you walk on a road with camber and I am not afraid of that - I am looking forward to it. They say the procedure takes two to three months and it's a lot of hard work from Monday to Friday, but I am ready."

The two-time CART champion has surprised doctors with the speed of his recovery and he is already back behind the wheel driving himself to and from his treatment sessions in Bologna and his Monaco home.

"It is quite enjoyable," said the 34-year-old. "The first couple of times you go for the brake, it's instinct and you realise that you don't have that option. But it only took a few minutes to get used to it. It's like riding a bike or playing with a ball. At the end the day, you never forget how to do it."