Junqueira might return for Mexico City
"They took a piece of my ribs and fused the two vertebra," Bruno remarks. "They also put some screws and two titanium rods through the three top and bottom vertebra to make it strong."
The screws and titanium rods will stay in place forever because it would require major surgery to remove them.
"One or two days after the accident I was already walking," he recalls. "It was Wednesday morning. I felt terrible but I started walking right away, doing it daily. At that time it was painful because my ankle was broken and we didn't know it. I complained about it being painful to step on my left foot for a couple of weeks until we looked at it and found it was actually broken."
Further examination revealed a broken talus bone in his left ankle.
"It was a very small fracture but it went from the top to the bottom. Every time I stepped down the back of my foot felt painful and it was swollen a lot. So I used a boot for two weeks and it was better.
"I'm working out three hours every day, trying to get in better shape and getting all the movements, flexibility and speed. I'm working hard, not just to drive the car but to be walking at normal speed and to do most other things. Now I can do most of those things. I'm at a good point.
"Right now I'm for sure not in a hundred percent of my shape from before, but I think I could even drive the car right now. We have to wait for the healing of the bone. After the proper healing and good bone strength has come back Dr Trammell will let me drive again.
"It takes a long time to make it fused. I can do everything but I cannot twist or bend my torso. That's the only thing I cannot do. I cannot carry weight or do something really stupid. Doing the exercises and helping the blood flow through the vertebra helps. Drinking a lot of milk and getting a lot of calcium and iron helps, and that's something I'm doing. But it's just a matter of time.
"I do an average of one and a half hours of cycling at home on a stationary 'bike and I do an hour and a half of exercises with my physiotherapist. Then I do maybe fifty minutes of swimming in the afternoon. I do a lot of physiotherapy exercises for my back and to strengthen my whole body. I also do a little bit on my legs, arms and shoulders, and a lot of exercises to get the strength and flexibility back for my left ankle.
"Last week was the first week I'm riding a regular stationary bike. Now I can bend a little bit. Before I had to stay completely straight. But I'm not going to ride on the road until after I've driven the car because if I have any accidents right now, either driving the car or riding the 'bike, my bones are not strong enough. So I won't ride a 'bike until next year."
"I put everything behind me and tried just to look forward," Bruno says. "There I was with a broken back, I couldn't walk very well. I had lost a lot of weight and muscle and energy, but I wanted to get back to my normal life and to drive the car as fast as possible. So I'm just looking forward.
"I had a great year this year and last year and all the other years I've been in Champ Cars. I've been able to win races and fight for the championship. I'm going to keep working hard to be able to return strong and be a contender for the championship again, just to do what I like which is to drive the car."
Bruno's friend Oriol Servia replaced him and Servia is third in the championship going into Montreal so there's a chance that Newman/Haas could finish one-two this year.
"I was very happy when Oriol had the chance. He's my friend but the most important thing is he's one of the best Champ Car drivers. For years he didn't get the opportunity to drive for a team that he could win with. I hope he can win a race this year. He's doing very well this year with Newman/Haas. For sure, it's his best season by far. I think he's driving better. He's driving perfect, making no mistakes and driving fast." ChampCar.ws