Engine failure a big blow, fears Kubica

Date published : 30 Oct 2009 - 16:35:55

Robert Kubica fears that his engine failure in second practice will be a big blow to his Abu Dhabi Grand Prix chances. The Interlagos runner-up's BMW expired in a cloud of smoke 13 laps into this evening's session, leaving Kubica at the bottom of the timesheets. "We were just starting to work on the set-up and the tyre evaluation in the second free practice session when I had an engine failure," he said. "Now the track conditions are improving with each lap, this is a big loss and I lost nearly one hour of valuable track time." But the team's technical chief Willy Rampf reckons BMW Sauber learned enough in the morning and with Nick Heidfeld's car to get Kubica's set-up into shape despite his loss of mileage. "Obviously, the engine failure on Robert's car cost us time working on the set-up," he said. "However, I believe we have enough data available to draw the right conclusions for the remainder of the weekend." Heidfeld ended the day 13th fastest, and concerned by his car's performance. "I'm not happy with the car's set-up and balance yet," he said. This weekend is set to mark BMW's farewell to Formula 1, although the team could yet survive in some form if its new owner Qadbak can get a 2010 entry.