Robert Kubica has admitted that a return to Formula 1 is "nearly impossible" at the moment.
The Polish driver is still recovering from a rally crash in February 2011 that partially severed his right hand and left him with several compound fractures. The 28-year-old still has restricted movement of his arms and fingers.
After three and a half seasons at the BMW Sauber team, he moved to Renault in 2010 and retained his drive for the following year. However, four days after testing the R31 for the first time in Valencia, he crashed during the first stage of the Ronde di Andora rally.
Despite still recovering from his injuries, he has returned to rallying and won the WRC2 title earlier this year.
A return to F1 is still the "dream" for Kubica, but he admits that it is very unlikely. He told BBC Sport: "I would be able to drive an F1 car on one or two circuits for testing. But it doesn't make sense to test for a day if I cannot race."
Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali believes that, despite the team monitoring his progress, he will be unable to cope with the demands of Formula 1. He replied: "He can express his opinion. It's clear to see I have limitations. I think there is only one person who can judge what I can do behind the steering wheel - and that's myself."
He added: "It's a dream, a target, but for now, it's very difficult, I would say nearly impossible.
"I will never take the opportunity if I don't feel 100% ready. If one day things improve, for sure we will see. For now, I am concentrating on rallying."
He will make a one-off appearance at the WRC Wales Rally GB this weekend, driving for Citroen. "I focus on my recovery - and rallying is helping me a lot in this," he said. "I can see a lot of improvement behind the wheel in a rally car.
"Driving on gravel is very demanding. There are lots of movements on the steering wheel which put a lot of stress on my arm and my hand. But I know this does not help my biggest limitation, which is driving a single-seater. I do not have the power to take control of it, but I will try my best."
The 2008 Canadian Grand Prix race winner is unsure what the future will hold for him next season, but he hasn't discounted a return to circuit racing. "If I stay in rallying next year, I would like to do a whole season," he said. "But to do all the rallies in one year is quite a big challenge.
"One option is to come back to circuit racing. For sure, it won't be single-seaters, but I haven't got it clear in my mind what I will do."
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| (c) Lotus F1 Team |
After three and a half seasons at the BMW Sauber team, he moved to Renault in 2010 and retained his drive for the following year. However, four days after testing the R31 for the first time in Valencia, he crashed during the first stage of the Ronde di Andora rally.
Despite still recovering from his injuries, he has returned to rallying and won the WRC2 title earlier this year.
A return to F1 is still the "dream" for Kubica, but he admits that it is very unlikely. He told BBC Sport: "I would be able to drive an F1 car on one or two circuits for testing. But it doesn't make sense to test for a day if I cannot race."
Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali believes that, despite the team monitoring his progress, he will be unable to cope with the demands of Formula 1. He replied: "He can express his opinion. It's clear to see I have limitations. I think there is only one person who can judge what I can do behind the steering wheel - and that's myself."
He added: "It's a dream, a target, but for now, it's very difficult, I would say nearly impossible.
"I will never take the opportunity if I don't feel 100% ready. If one day things improve, for sure we will see. For now, I am concentrating on rallying."
He will make a one-off appearance at the WRC Wales Rally GB this weekend, driving for Citroen. "I focus on my recovery - and rallying is helping me a lot in this," he said. "I can see a lot of improvement behind the wheel in a rally car.
"Driving on gravel is very demanding. There are lots of movements on the steering wheel which put a lot of stress on my arm and my hand. But I know this does not help my biggest limitation, which is driving a single-seater. I do not have the power to take control of it, but I will try my best."
The 2008 Canadian Grand Prix race winner is unsure what the future will hold for him next season, but he hasn't discounted a return to circuit racing. "If I stay in rallying next year, I would like to do a whole season," he said. "But to do all the rallies in one year is quite a big challenge.
"One option is to come back to circuit racing. For sure, it won't be single-seaters, but I haven't got it clear in my mind what I will do."
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