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Formula One
F1: Kobayashi Surprised With Career Turnaround
Kamui Kobayashi is allergic to the very thing he thought he would have to face this year...
SPEED Staff / GMM  |  Posted February 08, 2010   GMM Newswire
Kamui Kobayashi impressed many as he filled in for an injured Timo Glock for the final two races of 2009, including a sixth place in the season finale at Abu Dhabi. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Kamui Kobayashi's impressive finishes in relief of Timo Glock late last season and the revival of his career they subsequently brought, have surprised many including Kobayashi himself.
Kamui Kobayashi impressed many as he filled in for an injured Timo Glock for the final two races of 2009, including a sixth place in the season finale at Abu Dhabi. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

As the 2009 F1 season was winding down, the 23-year-old thought he was attending his last Grands Prix as Toyota's reserve driver.

Despite winning the preceding GP2 Asia Series, Kobayashi's campaign in the main F1 feeder championship had not gone as expected, then Toyota announced its withdrawal. Kobayashi knew he couldn’t afford to stay in Europe in 2010.

He was facing a return to Japan to work in the kitchen of one of his father's restaurants, which serve sushi, a dish Kobayashi is allergic to.

Then came Glock's qualifying crash and injuries sustained at Suzuka, allowing Kobayashi to fill the German's cockpit in Brazil and Abu Dhabi, impress the F1 world and most notably Peter Sauber with his exciting racing style. Sauber signed Kobayashi to team with Pedro De La Rosa this season.

"I fought all the way (in GP2) and I never gave up the idea that I could do better," he is quoted as saying by France's Auto Hebdo. "That paid off in Brail and Abu Dhabi (in F1). It was my chance.”

"I must admit that it is difficult to believe how much things changed from one moment to another. I was quite surprised myself," he said.

Kobayashi also appreciates Toyota's loyalty to him amid the team's flagging career and his lukewarm season in GP2.

"From the outside, it is difficult to understand their decision, as people tend to forget you after a series of poor results.

"I was lucky and I am very, very happy," he said after his new Sauber mount impressed at the Valencia test last week. "But with hindsight it is difficult to say what happened. Sometimes, luck and circumstance decide your future."

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