Reading Sky Sports F1, I was intrigued by the notion that we still have not heard much information about the well-being of Robert Kubica. Understandable if you consider that his injuries were severe, life-threatening and could be career-ending. If you were the press agent or handler for Kubica and you were hoping for a return to form and his way of living, you’d want to keep the information of his struggles under wraps…or at least I would if I were in that role. It’s for robert’s own benefit to keep negative news buried while he has time to recover and asses the scope of his possible return to racing.
Nonetheless, Kubica’s good friend Fernando Alonso told F1 Racing magazine that it is unclear whether the Polish driver will return to racing. Hints, allegations and brief news reports have the Pol testing in simulators as well as driving cars but there are also reports of continual operations and challenges. Suffice to say, F1 Mag most likely asked Fernando as they know he is a good mate of the Polish driver and there was certainly some interest from Ferrari in the possible appointment alongside Alonso if news reports are to believed.
Several months after the Kubica accident, I was speaking with our own Mark Hallam who posited this theory: Perhaps Williams F1 or a team like Ferrari might throw Robert a stipend and keep him on contract through his rehabilitation. If the Polish phenom does fully recover, they’d have a wicked weapon in Kubica for a song and the loyalty of the Pol knowing they took care of him while recovering. It sounded plausible to me as these teams could surely roll the dice for a driver of Kubica’s caliber. Having said that, Alonso comments to F1 Magazine were not as encouraging as I had hoped for:
“It’s very hard to say whether Robert will return to 100 per cent fitness and be able to race again in Formula 1,” Fernando told F1 Racing Magazine.
“Now and again we speak and I know how much it hurts him to be so far away from what has always been his world. He has to keep calm and think first and foremost about recovering total functionality of his body, then he can think again about racing.”
What do you think? Should Kubica hold a press conference and let his fans know how he’s doing? There are many who are concerned for him and would like to support him emotionally. Should he continue to remain calm, silent and focus on the prize? Would you have a spot for Kubica at your team even if you knew you were rolling the dice and he may never fully recover?
