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Kubica has no fear about return to Montreal Grand Prix

Jun 5, 2008 - 3:24 PM By Simon Lewis PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

MONTREAL (Ticker) -- Robert Kubica returned to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve a year after his horrific crash at the Canadian Grand Prix insisting it would be business as usual.

The BMW Sauber driver, currently fourth in the drivers' world championship, escaped with just a concussion and a sprained ankle following a high-speed crash early in last year's race.

A native of Poland, Kubica clipped the back of Jarno Trulli's Toyota, sending his car airborne into a wall before barrel-rolling across the track and sliding to a halt after crashing into the safety barriers on the other side.

The concussion forced Kubica out of the following week's race at Indianapolis, but he insisted there were no mental scars lingering from 12 months ago.

"I don't have to cope with anything," Kubica said. "Canada is one of my favorite tracks. Of course everybody knows what happened in 2007, but I don't have to cope because it's already a year ago, and since then I have been driving a Formula One car without thinking about it.

"In Formula One and motorsport, the risks are high. But I don't have any negative feelings about Canada. I am just coming here as I go to any other race, with the goal to score as many points as possible."

Kubica comes to the Canadian track in the wake of his runner-up finish behind Lewis Hamilton on the streets of Monaco two weeks ago, and he said he was mentally prepared for the change to approach a completely different circuit.

"I think your mental state is important in every sport, but in Formula One it is particularly important," he said. "Just look at the last race. Even in dry conditions, Monaco is very demanding mentally, but this time it was even more difficult. We had to maintain concentration for two hours while driving between the barriers at the limit in ever-changing conditions.

"Monaco is one of the easiest races with regard to physical preparation, but the hardest in regards to concentration."

Despite declaring himself prepared for the upcoming race, Kubica revealed that he has had issues with the mental aspects of the sport.

"I don't do any mental training, but I'm trying to improve myself all the time, and I think that my mental level is good," he said. "The best preparation for me was all those races against good drivers when I was younger.

"I think we are all our own best mental trainers, and this is just by analyzing and understanding our personal mistakes and approach."

Kubica, who this week ruled himself out as a contender for the world drivers' championship despite trailing current leader Hamilton by only six points, also underlined the different driving challenges that the Canadian Grand Prix would offer compared to Monaco.

"Montreal has a completely different track characteristic, a relatively low-downforce track," he said. "I like the track because there is a lot of heavy braking and stop-and-go. It is very important in Montreal to have good traction to exit the slow corners perfectly.

"We have to take care especially in the beginning of the weekend; the track then has very low grip as it is no permanent race track. Although I had the very big accident in 2007, Montreal is one of my favorite tracks."