Alonso is no longer the only driver in the modern era of Formula 1 to have won at Le Mans. Last Sunday, Robert Kubica wrote a new golden page in motorsport history by winning the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans race in the No. 83 Ferrari of the AF Corse team.
Kubica’s victory at Le Mans, the heroic triumph he shares with Alonso
And best of all, apart from the magnitude of the achievement and the way it was accomplished, Robert did it in a private Ferrari, not the official car, not the first ride. Kubica, who made his Formula 1 debut in 2006 and achieved his only victory in Canada in 2008 with BMW Sauber, suffered a serious rally accident in 2011 that cut short his career in the elite.
Against all odds, he returned to the F1 grid years later with Williams, although with no chance of shining. But his passion for racing did not fade: he found a second youth in endurance racing.
Trying his luck at the 24 Hours of Le Mans was not new to him either, as he had already attempted it on three previous occasions:
in 2021, in the LMP2 category, the second of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) prototypes; in 2023, also in LMP2; and in 2024 and 2025 with Ferrari, but with the customer team, the private AF Corse.
This year, in addition to being accompanied by Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson, the trio of drivers prevailed after 387 laps at the La Sarthe circuit. But above all, Robert Kubica is the most prominent name of all, the man everyone talked about during and after the race. The former Formula 1 driver finally got his revenge after the disappointment of 2021. That year, when he was on course to win, his car came to a sudden halt on the last lap. Now, four years later, he has won in the overall category. And with a Ferrari.
He was on the verge of signing for Ferrari for the 2012 F1 season
Kubica made no mistakes until the checkered flag and finished the race in a heroic first place, returning him to the top of the podium many years later: a victory that can only be compared to that of the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix in F1.
Racing has rewarded him, as he has finally done it with a Ferrari, the team he was on the verge of signing for the 2012 F1 season, and with it the dream of seeing Fernando Alonso and Robert Kubica forming a partnership in the premier class. But the serious rally accident he suffered in the 2011 preseason prevented him from dreaming of the title in the premier class.
That accident resulted in multiple fractures to his right arm, hand, and leg, as well as deep cuts to his forearm. The misfortune put his right hand at risk of amputation, but doctors managed to save it.
And although he regained mobility in his fingers, he never regained full mobility in his hand, something that can still be seen today when he had difficulty holding the trophy at Le Mans. Kubica was able to return to Formula 1 in the 2019 season with Williams (and also race two races with Alfa Romeo) after a marathon recovery.
No, he didn’t have much luck, because in addition to the high demands of driving a Formula 1 car, and the fact that at times his physical condition prevented him from making the extra effort to keep up with those very fast cars, that poor Williams didn’t allow him to show off his talent very much, always at the bottom of the table.
Kubica reinvented himself in the World Endurance Championship: “I knew this was my goal.”
However, beyond this, it can be said that the aforementioned accident in 2011 was the second time Kubica came back to life. In other words, there are races that consecrate and others that resurrect. In 2007, at the Canadian Grand Prix, his BMW Sauber crashed into a wall at over 300 km/h. It flew, bounced, and broke apart. The world held its breath. Miraculously, he walked out of the hospital. In Poland, they still say that it was John Paul II who protected him. In fact, he had a picture of the Pope in his car.
But, as we said, his new life was not in single-seaters. When his only chance to continue in F1 was as a third driver, Robert found refuge in another type of race: endurance racing, long-distance racing. The kind that demands more from the spirit than from reflexes.
Kubica reinvented himself in the WEC. His debut at Le Mans in 2021 was painful: he lost the LMP2 victory by one lap. But there he discovered what he had lost: the joy of racing for the pure art of doing so. Like a kid in go-karts. “Then I knew what my goal was,” he would say years later. “To try to win here one day.” After several more attempts, he did it in 2025, a race in which he became a hero: of the 24 hours that the legendary event lasts, he spent more than 11 hours racing in his Ferrari; in other words, he did almost half of the race on his own.
Logically, the victory at Le Mans has become one of the most special in Kubica’s career, which is also adorned with the laurels of the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix. “It was a challenging race, the pace was very high, a sprint race for many laps. I had the last two hours under control, without making any mistakes despite having driven for many hours, and without any technical problems.”
The team leader’s personal effort was epic, as he himself revealed: “I was able to bring the car home after not sleeping for 35 hours. I’m a 40-year-old veteran driver who is still in good shape and I was able to help achieve this sweet reward.” Alonso and Kubica, the only drivers to win F1 and Le Mans in the last century
The victory at Le Mans represents a personal vindication. Alonso achieved it in 2018 and 2019 with Toyota, and now Kubica has added his name alongside the Spaniard as one of the few drivers capable of dominating both Sunday sprints and 24-hour races. Two styles, one goal: glory.
What’s more, there’s something else they have in common: Fernando Alonso and Robert Kubica are the only drivers in the 21st century to have won an F1 Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
On Sunday, Kubica got out of the Ferrari AF Corse without any extravagant celebrations, without making a big deal of it. And perhaps that is what racing is all about: being the best, without thinking you are better than anyone else. Because, as they say, in the world of competition, and specifically in car racing, there are no adapted categories, it is the drivers who adapt to the vehicle. The best example is Albert Llovera, a paraplegic driver who competes every year in the Dakar Rally, the toughest rally in the world. Like Robert, Albert is an example of overcoming adversity and resilience, and the Andorran is one of the most admired drivers in the Dakar.
“He was already a legend in our sport, but now he’s even more so after winning Le Mans,” said Fernando Alonso after his friend’s victory. “You all know about the injuries he suffered in the accident and everything; I think today is a very happy day for motorsport, I’m really happy for him. I’ll call him tomorrow. I didn’t want to disturb him today! He’ll be celebrating, but very happy. I’m proud of him,” said the Aston Martin driver.
A few days later, Kubica responded in a video posted by his sponsor, Orlen: “Thanks for your message, Fernando. Now I’m in your club. Sure, I haven’t won a world title, but this Le Mans was the hardest to win, with so many Hypercars on the track. Maybe one day we can compete together again.” Both of them know what it takes to achieve such a feat.