CR-Z

Make
Honda
Segment
Hatchback

Professional racers are used to driving on a knife's edge, but a serious crash can really shake a man up. Just ask Felipe Massa, for example. In 2008 he narrowly missed out on winning the F1 championship to Lewis Hamilton, and might have mounted a serious challenge again the following year if not for a big crash that inflicted serious wounds to his head. Massa recovered but never quite found his edge again. Robert Kubica is of another breed, however.

In 2007 he suffered an enormous high-speed crash at the Canadian Grand Prix, but the following year he came back to win the very same race. Unfazed. The recovery has taken a little longer from his last crash, but Kubica is getting right back on the horse and showing no signs of slowing down.

The crash took place during the Ronde di Andora rally in Italy in February of last year while Kubica was trying his hand at rallying in the off-season. A roadside guardrail impaled his car and partially severed his forearm. The long recovery has precluded him from returning to F1 these past two seasons, but now that he's on the road to full health, he's back at it.

At another rally, in Italy no less. The Ronde Gomitolo di Lana tarmac rally this past weekend marked the first time Kubica had competed in a professional motorsport event in 18 months. So how did he do? Impressively, to say the least. Driving a Subaru Impreza WRC S12B, Kubica trounced the competition to take the checkered flag in first place. Kubica says he remains focused on getting back into Formula One. While that might take a while, local rally drivers in Italy had better watch out. To see what we mean, check out the trackside footage in the first video and the in-car dashboard footage from Kubica's Subaru in the second.