Having done best in testing, now Robert Kubica has gone and injured himself in a rally car: Formula 1 driver Robert Kubica injured in rally crash (BBC News)
I hope Robert makes a speedy recovery. In the past race drivers used to drive anything. For me that said a lot about a driver. Robert Kubica injured in rally crash in Italy | 2011 F1 season
Wow, I wonder if they'll sign someone to drive the first few races or replace him entirely? Just when he was getting a really competetive F1 car under him too....
i'm a real newbie to F1 and had really enjoyed Robert as an up and coming, seemed like he drove well last year, hope he can come back. boxcars
Strange, I thought I remembered the team refusing to give him permission to run an earlier rally. He wasn't even racing at the time of the crash, he was on the way to the start. He was apparently considered at risk of having his hand amputated, though this is no longer the case. He was trapped in the car for about an hour before the necessary extraction equipment arrived. Here's hoping he'll regain full functionality. That won't happen quickly though. Sorry if this seems callous, but I can't help wondering who will replace him. The reserve driver is Senna, though given the critical testing and pre-season development to come I wonder whether they'll hire a more experienced driver, at least to finish up the testing. Trouble is, if Senna is to partner Petrov, even if it's only for the start of the season, Senna will need to spend as much time running the new car as he possibly can.
From what I read Robert was something like 4.6K from the start of the stage. The way I read that he was competing on the stage. No one crashes like that on a transit section. The fact it took so long to extricate him shows one of the real dangers of rallying as opposed to racing on a track. I hope Senna gets the nod to drive. It will be interesting to see how much talent he really has. Last year all he showed was that he was good at driving his mirrors. I sure hope Robert makes a full & speedy recovery.
You're probably right about where the crash occurred. Reports at this stage will be sketchy and full of errors. Here's the article I'd just read when I wrote that: Renault F1 driver Robert Kubica injured in rally crash (thesportreview.com)
Yep Steve what you read is what you posted. Sorry to have doubted what you posted. If he did crash that bad on a transit then it is a freakish accident for sure. I'm sure more info will filter out eventually. Looking at the pictures of his car I can't fathom how it was his right hand & leg that suffered injury.
I'm still not sure that article is right. It's an early report...we'll hear more soon enough. As to the right hand, arm and leg, to me that's further proof of what happens when reporters, bloggers, etc, rush to publish/post without checking facts and verifying info. I did some searching and read nearly as many articles that said left as said right. Go figure.
Here is the latest that I have found. It sounds as though Robert will be out for the entire season. His injuries sound pretty bad. Fears that Robert Kubica's injuries could be career-ending | Renault | Formula 1 news, live F1 | ESPN F1
Looks like it was definitely during the stage rather than prior to. Here are a few more details. Kubica could miss 2011 season after rally crash (gpupdate.net)
A couple of more links and one has some video. Co-driver explains Kubica crash - Racer.com FORMULA ONE - F1: Encouraging Progress For Kubica
Encouraging but sounds like he has a long road before him. Unfortunately guard rails installed poorly can be more dangerous than what they protect you from... Hope everything goes well and we see Kubica back in an F1 car.
It would be interesting to see Senna in the Renault, it sure would take away any excuses from last season..... and the comparison to Petrov - who at times has been brilliant - would be interesting to watch. Is he their first choice, or will they go outside and hire someone away from another team, someone more experienced? I hear Villeneuve wants back into F1...