But on his fifth trip to Le Mans, Kubica took overall victory during the same weekend when F1 hosted its Canadian race – the site of the Pole’s sole grand prix win, which came in 2008 and briefly took him to the top of the drivers’ standings.

Ferrari has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the third year running but a late surge from Porsche Penske Motorsport denied the Italian manufacturer a podium sweep.

Kubica's big break with Ferrari's Formula 1 team fell apart after a devastating injury. On Sunday, he was the reason Ferrari won Le Mans race overall.