Kubica's Recovery

[ringo]

I don't accept his choice, neither would Mclaren.
Either you do F1 full time or you do crocodile wrestling or base jumping full time.

That's just me, you wont see me sky diving or bungee jumping. A roller coaster can provide enough adrenalin.
If there is a high % chance to die or lose mobility, i wont do it. I'm a coward.

[...]

Rallying should be safe at least and i think his co driver was right about the cockpit being too easy to penetrate.

Anyway i hope Robert has the best doctors to put him back together 100%. He needs to be able to make a return by next year. The grid looks kind of weak without him on it.

[Pup]

With one hand not functioning %100, sure he can go on racing cars but not Formula 1. I think this is the same for the eye case. I wish Robert a speedy and complete recovery.

If you think about how a driver uses his hands in an F1 car, it might be possible even if he doesn't have full use of his right hand. He can shift with either hand, so all he really needs to be able to do with his right is to grip the wheel tightly enough and push buttons with his thumb. Even the buttons might be able to be moved to the left if necessary.

I wouldn't count him out at all at this point. We'll just have to see how his recovery goes - could go either way.

[fritticaldi]

It appears like this is a golden opportunity for Bruno Senna.
Maybe the team could test ex-Virgin driver Di Grassi?. After-all the Brazilian was in the Renault system.

[mcjamweasel]

[...]

[Giblet]

[...]

[PlatinumZealot]

That is totally different level of risk. Just youtube rally crashes.
Can't think of a rally driver who hasn't broken something.

Would you be an Alkaida henchman just for kicks? knowing you have a family to feed?

extreme case, but there is some measure of risk assessment you have to take. Boullier and Kubica assessed the risks and they made their decision. Was it the wisest decision? That is a matter of opinion depending on the person. Ultimately though Kubica is the one that can decide if it was the best decision or not.

[ringo]

It's selfish getting high off risking your life when you have others depending on you.

...

Based on that philosphy no-one should go racing at all, be that rally or F1, or whatever else for fear of risking their life and the effects that losing it would have on friends and family. You're berating Kubica for injuring himself during a rally and causing his team trouble? How do you think his loved ones feel? Do you think that they give a --- what shape the car that he crashed was? Do you think that Kubica himself would be feeling any better now if it was his R31 that he was sat in when he crashed?

Don't be so bloody small minded, especially when you are as big a fan of motorsport as you are, it just makes you come accross as a hypocrite.

He's payed as an F1 pilot to win races for Lotus Renualt, not a weekend club rally driver. If he's going to get injured it should be while doing what he's being payed to, driving an F1 car.

A quarter back is not going to go bull riding or skateboarding the night before the super bowl, risking his throwing arm. He's not being payed to ride bulls for the fun of it.
He's payed to win the super bowl, for the team, millions of fans, and especially share holders etc. Huge investments were put into him and he has to deliver. That's his responsibility as a quarter back. If he injures his arm in the game it's understandable because it was for the team.

Doing any extreme high risk activity should be avoided. If he wants to drive Karts or whatever no problem. A pilot just can't go around with a devil may care attitude; there's too much counting on him. Everyone in the team did their Job to the best of their ability, he be mindful of that and ensure he is healthy enough to hold up his end of the deal.

It's Robert's responsibility to be in shape to pilot the R31 in the interests of the team and it's owners. You can't cut it any other way.


You're the one that is being small minded if you Think Robert is only responsible for himself. Kubica almost threw away his career in a silly no name rally, and surely has put a dent in Lotus Renault's ambitions for 2011.


He's going to recover fully, and I'm sure he as well as Renault be more mindful from now on.

edit: if the mods find this post necessary due to other removals, please remove it.

[Giblet]

He had the full support of his team, and Boulier understood that Robert needed to rally to 'keep his sanity'.

So Robert and the team went into the contract talks with full understanding that Robert would be rallying, and both understood the risks.

He knew his responsibilities, and held to them in a completely open and transparent way.

His job to drive an F1 car is just that, a job (albeit a frikkin awesome one), and the saying goes "Happy people work to live, they don't live to work".

[timbo]

Doing any extreme high risk activity should be avoided. If he wants to drive Karts or whatever no problem.

Karting is actually more dangerous than a rally car. You can easily land on your head.

You're the one that is being small minded if you Think Robert is only responsible for himself. Kubica almost threw away his career in a silly no name rally, and surely has put a dent in Lotus Renault's ambitions for 2011.

This was obviously not a silly no name rally for him.
He obviously needed it.
The team approved it.
Case over.

[ringo]

needed it for what? missing out the season?

The team can say whatever they want, but it did put a dent in their 2011 campaign.

anyway

But in a statement on the team's official website, they said that Kubica had been briefly woken by doctors at the Santa Corona hospital in Pietra Ligure and was able to talk to his relatives.

"He was also able to move his fingers, which is an encouraging sign for the rest of the recovery process," it said.

Thank god, his fingers are moving.

[Giblet]

needed it for what? missing out the season?

No not at all: This

"Whether it's a Lotus, a Renault or a Skoda it doesn't make any difference," he said. "It's nothing to do with business. We've let him do it because rallying is what he loves to do. Rallying is vital for Robert and his sanity. Besides that, there is a reciprocal agreement. We knew the risks and so did he. We didn't want a robot or corporate man for a driver."

If you read between the line, Mr.Boullier wants Robert Kubica, who wouldn't be Robert Kubica if he was kept from what he loves to do. Being a racing driver, it can be hard to get your adrenaline fix from such limited testing and a smattering of races a year.

[andrew]

Plus it allows Kubica to keep his skills and reaction times at the required standard since the teams are no longer allowed to test freely.

[segedunum]

Don't be so suprised people hate you around here. In a situation like this where peoples emotions are running high, they naturally wan't to hope for the best. Then you walk in and rub salt all in the wounds.

Speak for yourself. Rub salt in what wounds? I'm afraid hoping for the best won't take away the seriousness of the position Kubica was in and is still in. People talking as if he's going to come back in a few months is just plain stupidity. The truth is the truth, regardless of what your sensibilities are.

Nobody here knows the exact extent of Robert's injuries.

What's that claptrap supposed to mean? Which part of 'Kubica was fighting for his life' did you not understand? They purposefully didn't look at a lot of his other injuries (which we do know) because they had to keep him alive first. He has to recover properly from that in addition to any other trauma he has suffered.

Somehow, I don't think he'd appreciate you saying 'His Formula 1 career is over' as you so eloquenty put it earlier in the thread.

That will be explained to him as a definite possibility, if it hasn't already.

A spade is a spade, I'm afraid.

[chapmanlung]

jes, a forum is in essence where people are allowed to air their thoughts, no need really to talk to each other with attitude, the most important is that kubica is getting better,

[mcjamweasel]

Ringo, may I suggest that you read this: http://goo.gl/fb/wj1O0