Robert Kubica is anticipating a tough weekend in the World Endurance Championship at Lone Star Le Mans.
The Polish driver will compete alongside Robert Shwartzman and Chinese driver Yifei Ye in the No. 83 AF Corse Ferrari as the trio continues to search for their first podium of the season.
That particular Ferrari has lagged behind its two sister cars, which have both stood on the podium this year and won at Le Mans in the No. 50 car’s case.
The weather is expected to be very hot in Texas this weekend, which may present additional issues with tyre degradation in WEC.
Robert Kubica is anticipating sizeable tyre degradation and traffic to be a factor
The Circuit of The Americas is returning to the WEC calendar for the first time since February 2020 and the tyres are likely to degrade very quickly due to the warm temperatures.
This will make precision even more important as the race progresses to avoid driving on the marbles away from the racing line and losing grip.
It may be almost impossible to stay away from them on some occasions when overtaking or, particularly for Hypercars, when lapping the much slower LMGT3 entries.
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Robert Kubica from WEC career stats to net worth
Kubica is aware of the impact tyre degradation could have after a recent test session which saw just seven cars.
He told the WEC website: “[The] weather will have a big effect and tyre degradation will be crucial. One thing we noticed on the test was quite a lot of marbles around the track and there were not many cars there, there were six Hypercars and one GT car.
“So, with the whole field, it might be quite important to follow the lines. Of course, the traffic, which is the DNA of endurance races, will play an important role.”
Despite the test with such few cars, the former Formula 1 driver is feeling more optimistic ahead of the weekend than last time out in Brazil.
He added: “From the performance point of view, the car in the test felt much nicer and much better than in Brazil.
“We were coming from a disappointing weekend in Sao Paulo, and straight away in Austin, we had a better feeling. In testing, you never know what other teams are running, what they are testing and what package they operate. However, I’m definitely looking forward to this race.”
The No. 83 AF Corse Ferrari has not scored points in the last two races
The opening five races of the season have been ending with mixed results for Kubica and the No. 83 AF Corse Ferrari crew, kicking off with a fourth place in the season opener at the Qatar 1812km.
This remains their best result so far this season and was followed up with two consecutive eighth places at Imola and Spa.
By contrast, the last two races at Le Mans and Sao Paulo have been point-less as their teammates have comfortably scored points.
COTA is also a circuit Kubica has raced on previously in his career, retiring from the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in 2019.