Winter diet made me quicker

Kubica's weight loss results in faster pace

(GMM) Robert Kubica on Saturday revealed that some of his extra pace in 2008 can be attributed to a winter weight loss regime.

"I worked hard and this is the kind of result we can get from it," the Pole said, after securing his and BMW-Sauber first pole position in Bahrain.

At 185 centimeters, the 22-year-old is among the tallest formula one drivers on the grid.

After a difficult 2007 season, he agreed with his trainer to try to shed some pounds and get closer to the weight of his diminutive German teammate Nick Heidfeld, who weighs in about ten kilograms lighter than Kubica.

He told reporters that he successfully lost 6kg between the 2007 Brazilian grand prix and last month's season opener in Australia.

"We saw that if I were lighter I would go a bit quicker," Kubica said.

"It makes a good profit in the performance and I think it was also in some way the key to being so strong in the beginning of the season," he added.

The minimum weight for car plus driver in F1 is 605kg, but the lighter a driver is, the more ballast can be positioned in key areas for additional performance.