Kubica hoping for 2012 return
Robert Kubica’s manager Daniele Morelli has been left baffled by Renault’s claim that the driver will not be ready for the start of the 2012 Formula One season.
Renault yesterday issued a statement in which team principal Eric Boullier expressed his disappointment Kubica would not be driving in the season-opening grand prix in Australia in mid-March.
However, Morelli has highlighted the fact Kubica himself remarked only that he is “not yet certain to be ready for the 2012 season”.
Speaking in Gazzetta dello Sport, Morelli said: “I don’t understand why Renault has changed Robert’s words.
“It’s not true he won’t be ready for 2012. He stated he doesn’t have certainty that he will be in shape for the first tests in February.
“We count on and hope to be ready, but in any case the delay will be a few months.
“Renault will go its way with regards to the drivers, while we will look for alternative solutions.
“His contract does not extend into 2012. It ends at the end of December, so from January 1 will we be free to go in whatever direction.”
Involved in an horrific crash in a rally in Andorra in February, Kubica suffered severe damage to his right forearm, as well as fractures to his right elbow, shoulder and leg.
Following four operations, Kubica has undergone a lengthy period of rehabilitation but has so far not driven a car and has subsequently decided to delay the possible date of his return to racing.
Morelli concedes there have been complications, adding: “Plans have gone out of the window.
“But if Robert comes back that’s because he will be competitive like before and attractive for the top teams.
“He is a bit overweight, but his right leg is almost the same as the left one muscle-wise.
“His elbow’s external brace will be removed on Tuesday, so from that point on he will be free from that scrap metal.
“The hand’s sensitivity is OK. The only limit is strength as the forearm’s muscles have been immobilised for a long time so there’s a lot of work to do.
“But it’s a matter of time, by the end of January the strength should be adequate.”
