Kubica’s misfortune continues in Mexico

RK M-Sport World Rally Team continued to suffer misfortune as Rally Mexico entered its third day of competition today. Having impressed in the early phases, Robert Kubica fell foul of the tricky conditions – rolling his Ford Fiesta RS WRC on SS13 and bringing his event to an untimely end.

Kubica, who is co-driven by fellow Pole Maciej Szczepaniak, had been running as high as fourth overall during yesterday’s challenging speed tests. Impressing on what was his first venture to the Mexican fixture, the Formula One race winner continued to improve his performance through the high-altitude stages and set the third fastest time through the second pass of ‘Parque Gto Bicentenario’ (SS9).

Unfortunately, his good work was undone through the evening’s super specials – a roll relegating him to ninth position. As the action resumed in the Sierra de Lobos mountains north-east of León today, his misfortune continued.

Posting a solid time as he regrouped over the first stage of the day, Kubica looked set to climb the leader-board. Unfortunately, it was not to be. Carrying too much speed into a corner over a crest, the Pole made contact with a small block on the side of the road – forcing his Fiesta RS WRC into a roll.

With damage to the roll cage, Kubica will take no further part in this weekend’s event but will return in Portugal – determined to make the most of what will be a more familiar rally.

Robert Kubica (DNF) said:

“It has been a very disappointing rally for me. Up until the first incident on Friday, I felt that our pace was very good. I was driving well, but we made a small mistake on the super special which set us back. It was a case of low concentration and I was caught out on the slippery Tarmac into the first corner.

“Unfortunately, we made another mistake today. It was a combination of a number of factors that finished our rally. We went slightly too fast into a corner over a crest but I also think that the pacenotes were not as strong as they could have been through that section. Since it was so slippery there was no margin for error, and no possibility to prevent the roll. The road was very narrow and we hit a small block on the side of the stage – rolling the car and ending up on the roof.”

Team Principal, Malcolm Wilson OBE, said:

“It is a real shame that Robert [Kubica] will lose out on what could have been another top result. I’m glad that both he and Maciej [Szczepaniak, co-driver] are OK, but it was a very disappointing end to their rally.

“Robert was especially disappointed which is difficult to see knowing how much he puts into each and every rally he contests. That said, I have no doubt that he will bounce back when we move to some of his more familiar events.”