Robert Kubica made his return to Hinwil as the new Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN reserve driver for his seat fit as he readies for track run in F1 2020.
Eleven years after parting with Sauber, Kubica returned to the team’s base in Hinwil in Switzerland, as Alfa Romeo’s reserve for a seat fit in the 2020 F1 car. The Polish driver felt it as a ‘coming home’ moment, as this is where his career began.
Kubica also made it clear that he will be driving the Alfa Romeo car at some point – which was his intention all the time, but crucially, it wasn’t mentioned in the announcement release. The team shared a video of his return, where he said:
“I’m here in Hinwil. It’s kind of like coming back home, to where I started my career in F1 in 2006. It is very nice to be back in this environment. I have seen many people with which I worked in the past. They have just completed a seat fit into the new car.
“So, I’m looking forward not only to drive the car, but to work with the team, so keep your crossed fingers for Alfa Romeo Racing Orlen.” As noted earlier, Kubica last associated with Sauber in 2009, when it was run in partnership with German manufacturer, BMW.
With only six days of pre-season testing in F1 2020, it will be interesting to see if Kubica gets to drive the car in those days and or the 18-inch tyre tests or even the FP1 sessions, where he will replace Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi.
Here’s Antonio Giovinazzi on what Alfa Romeo has to do in 2020
Here’s story on Robert Kubica’s signing
Here’s Marcus Ericcson on Belgium GP and his future
Kimi Raikkonen speaks up on season with Alfa Romeo
Kubica felt comfortable straightaway in the BMW M4 DTM car at Jerez
The story was edited by Darshan Chokhani