Robert Kubica’s potential was obvious in his debut season in 2007, and furthermore in 2008 when some were thinking he was going to win the championship! He collected his first win at the Canadian Grand Prix on his way to finishing 4th overall, but since then his BMW’s have not been as quick, and the Pole has slipped under the radar somewhat.
However that has all changed in 2010 at Renault, as Kubica has displayed impressive speed and consistency to creep rather unnoticed up to 7th in the drivers standings, just 9pts off the top spot. Despite this, not many are recognising him as a serious title contender.
The young Pole has kept his head down and out of trouble, and I believe that he is, a championship contender albeit an outside shot. He has a tendency to not make mistakes, and this combined with consistency and a reliable car mean he will always be there or there abouts.
| Pos | Driver | Nationality | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Felipe Massa | Brazilian | Ferrari | 39 |
| 2 | Fernando Alonso | Spanish | Ferrari | 37 |
| 3 | Sebastian Vettel | German | RBR-Renault | 37 |
| 4 | Jenson Button | British | McLaren-Mercedes | 35 |
| 5 | Nico Rosberg | German | Mercedes GP | 35 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | British | McLaren-Mercedes | 31 |
| 7 | Robert Kubica | Polish | Renault | 30 |
He has been linked with the job at Ferrari, something which I can see happening in the near future, and if that becomes a reality I don’t believe anyone will be able to keep up with him, not even Vettel! :O
The Renault R30 has looked extremely good in comparison to the cars the team has produced in the previous two years and according to the team’s technical director James Allison, it is only going to get better:
I think we can [beat Mercedes] because at the moment they’re only just ahead of us on qualifying pace, whereas we seemed to have the edge on race pace in Malaysia. We will have more updates in China, including a new floor and an alternative front wing. Although this might not be enough to get ahead of Mercedes in qualifying trim, it should move us closer to their tail. And if we can jump ahead of them at the start of a race, I’m confident we have the pace to stay ahead.
James Allison
The R30 is by no means the fastest car on the grid, but Kubica has proven he doesn’t need the fastest car to be right up there with the big boys, and should Red Bull’s reliability come into question, or any of the other ‘big four’ slip up, don’t be surprised if Kubica is there to pick up the points and sneak to victory.
Image (C) Renault/LAT
He is doing an unbelievable job and just think if he’d have not had the accident in Bahrain, could have picked up another 5 or so points and be right up there!
That´s it! he´s one of the top 5 drivers on my predictions league entry now.
Kubica has done a good job but two points that must not be forgotten is that the R30 is much better than the R29 and he has benefitted from circumstance. He put in a stunning race in Aus but was fortunate that Felipe was held in the pits, then he took advantage of the situation at Mal in quali when a few big names were knocked out. Will he win this year? Only if the others keep suffering but I doubt that will happen.
He could end up at Ferrari, he’s certainly a very good driver perhaps the same level as Felipe but I doubt he’s the very best like Alonso, Schumi or maybe Lewis with some more experience. He’s the sort of driver who needs everything to go right and come to him and then he puts in a great peformance. Kubica is maybe the best defender on the grid too which is interesting as I think that is a quality Felipe needs to work on. However, he does make mistakes -Bahrain 08- and is notoriously fussy or a perfectionist if I’m being diplomatic which is why he seems at home at renault because it is a tidy little package with a good balance and a good but aggressive development programme ahead. He’s a good driver nonetheless but he won’t win this year.
Very valid argument. I think he’s one of the most under-rated drivers on the current grid. In my book, he’s as good as Lewis or Alonso, he just never had a car that was good enough! He’s a perfect candidate for Ferrari and if teamed with Alonso in 2011, it’ll be the most deadly pair, I have no doubts about that! Real championship material (given a good car), in my opinion, are Lewis, Alonso, Vettel and Kubica. These four are unbeatable if things are right. They are a class apart from all the other drivers, although I don’t like the first three because of their attitude.
Renault’s closest competition is Force India this year, but they have the upper hand in the form of Kubica. If Adrian can get his act together, he could do the team some justice as they have a very good car, better than the R30 imo. And being a Force India fan, I just hope they get a really good driver for 2011, someone who can really do justice to the team’s potential. Adrian is fast but unreliable and Tonio is just not good enough.
Would love to see Kubica alongside Alonso at Ferrari. That might be my dream team right now. Or maybe Alonso, Vettel…
Have to agree with you Jack.Again he to me one of the two naturally talented driver I have seen in 10 years of my f1 career.(other been the ICEMAN) If his car is consistent & he can keep out of trouble for the rest of the season as he did in the first three race then I wouldn’t surprise.
He will be in the shopping list for teams like Ferrari & Mclaren in the future.
Kubica hadn’t impressed me until the start of this season,07 and 09 Heidfeld who never won a race matched him in both seasons but did well in 08 but has really impressed me so far in 2010,if he wasn’t hit by that clown Sutil in Bahrain he would have been 6th or 7th.In Oz brilliant start and then brilliantly held off Hamilton and the two Ferrari’s for an excellent 2nd and Then a really good drive in Malaysia for 4th.
Can he win the title,No,not a chance Mclaren, Ferrari and Red Bull are just too quick but they could jump Mercedes,Kubica will be best of the rest or ahead of Rosberg,I think Kubica will be at Ferrari next year