A mini petrol-powered off-road motorcar immediately captivated a four year old Robert Kubica’s attention, after he found it staring at him from a display window in his native Poland. Despite the virtual nonexistence of Polish talent in the motorsport arena, the young boy had already developed a fair idea of his prospective career choice, and would endlessly pester his parents to purchase him the coveted toy. After exhausting his passion for the mini vehicle which he would drive in front of his home, Kubica trailed the footsteps of most aspiring race car drivers and turned his attention to kart racing. He was too young to compete, he was told upon reaching the racing grid closest to his home, and so the aspiring Pole spent time sharpening his karting skills until he could contest official tournaments at the age of ten.
Once on the track, Kubica quickly stamped his authority as a talented driver by sealing numerous victories in the Polish series. In 1997, the young Pole went to view the Hungaroring Grand Prix, and from then on there was no doubt in his mind that his future would involve the world’s most prestigious racing circuits. The six-time Polish karting title-winner packed his bags for a move to Italy to try his fortunes on a more competitive grid away from his homeland.
Once in Italy, Kubica swiftly joined ranks with an able factory squad, and by 1998, he had sealed victory at the Italian Championship to become the first foreigner to have clinched the honour. The Pole consolidated his burgeoning fame after winning the coveted Monaco Kart Cup and ending runner-up in the European series. There was no stopping the fired-up youth from Poland, who went on to emulate the success of the 1998 season the following year after winning not only the 1999 Italian Championship once again but also triumphing at the German Championship and the Elf Masters. Kubica put a lid on his kart-racing exploits in 2001 after finishing fourth in that year’s world championship.
Choosing to extend his stay in Italy, Kubica made a transition to Formula Renault in 2001. After a less-than-smooth first season, the young Pole’s performance picked up steam the following year, when he notched up four wins and ended runner-up in the overall standings. By the end of the 2002 season, Kubica had won a deal with Flavio Briatore and the Renault Formula One squad, and in 2003, the Pole was elevated to Formula 3 Euro series, a spell he would inaugurate in style with a victory at the Norisring circuit. The Pole repeated his successful run in the 2004 season after putting on a series of dazzling performances at that year’s event in Macau.
In a move that proved to be a masterstroke, the Pole enlisted himself with the Spanish squad Epsilon Euskadi for the 2005 Renault World Championship where he recorded four wins, 11 podium positions and three pole standings on his way to being heralded the Championship winner for the year. Kubica’s magnificent run was recompensed with an invitation to a test drive with Formula One’s Renault in Barcelona as the year 2005 drew to a close. However the Pole’s impressive form had also captured the notice of BMW Sauber, who expressed their willingness to add Kubica to the payroll for the 2006 season behind the team’s first drivers.
Kubica did not disappoint, and proved himself every bit worth the investment after filling the void created by Jacques Villeneuve’s unscheduled exit from the team to assume the mantle of Poland’s first Formula One representative. Throughout the 2006 and 2007 seasons, Kubica continued to bag meaningful points for BMW, before managing to ostensibly overshadow his veteran teammate Nick Heidfeld during the 2008 run. The Pole’s performances throughout the 2009 season were frustrated by an incompetent car, and by the end of the year when BMW’s exit from Formula One seemed all the more certain, Kubica joined hands with Renault for the 2010 season. He currently stands seventh in the overall driver’s standings with 73 points, behind Germany’s Nico Rosberg.
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