"This second test will be to assess his capabilities to return to the highest level of competition," says Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul
Wednesday 12 July 2017 17:24, UK
Robert Kubica will test again for Renault as the Polish driver steps up his bid to make a full-time return to Formula 1 six years after suffering career-changing injuries.
The team say the test, which will take place at the Paul Ricard Circuit in France, will be designed "to extensively evaluate his driving capabilities".
Team boss Cyril Abiteboul added: "This second test will be to assess his capabilities to return to the highest level of competition."
It's the clearest sign yet that Renault are giving serious consideration to rehiring Kubica for 2018, almost six years after he suffered catastrophic arm injuries in an accident when rallying.
Only Sauber and McLaren have so far scored fewer points than Renault this term with the under-pressure Jolyon Palmer yet to finish in the points.
Sky Sports exclusive: Robert Kubica targets full Formula 1 comeback
Kubica's first comeback drive for the team occurred last month at Valencia when he ran in a 2012 car and completed over 100 laps.
Although no further details have been released, it is understood that Kubica was immediately quicker than Sergey Sirotkin, the Renault test driver.
"Once I have done this test I would like to test more. It doesn't depend only on my side, but I will keep working and hopefully one day I will have a chance to go forward and step-by-step maybe have [a] proper comeback," Kubica subsequently told Sky Sports.
Kubica's next outing, the date of which hasn't been revealed, will also be behind the wheel of the 2012 E20.
"Whilst the first day of testing at Valencia was no more than to let Robert get reacquainted with the feel of driving again, this second test will be to assess his capabilities to return to the highest level of competition," said Abiteboul.
"This is a new phase in his personal and professional journey and we are proud to support him in the form of lending our infrastructure at Paul Ricard that is suitable for professional and non-professional drivers. There are still many hurdles for him to overcome, and he knows better than anyone else that only his performance will determine if he can one day return to being a professional driver."
There have been suggestions that Kubica could be drafted in by Renault to complete a day of running in their 2017 car in the official post-race test in Hungary at the start of August.
After Nico Hulkenberg and Sergey Sirotkin ran at the Bahrain test, Renault can use either of the two days in Budapest to test an experienced F1 driver.
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