Felipe Massa hopes to recover quickly from the serious injuries he suffered in a qualifying crash at the Hungarian Grand Prix so he can return to racing.
The Brazilian, 28, flew home to Sao Paulo on Monday after leaving the hospital that had treated him for the fractured skull he suffered on 25 July.
"I'm very happy and in a good position to improve myself to eventually go back to the car, to drive," he said.
"We'll see how long this will take - but I hope it will be very quick."
While the Ferrari driver was expressing his determination and desire to get back to racing only nine days after the serious accident, he has also stressed that he will not return too soon.
"It is important to be fully recovered before returning to the track," he said in a statement.
The accident occurred after a spring from Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP car hit Massa's helmet.
Massa was travelling at more than 160mph when the spring hit him, but pressure on the brakes reduced his speed to about 60mph when he hit the tyre wall.
He will now continue his rehabilitation in a Sao Paulo hospital for another two days upon his arrival in his home city.
After undergoing further tests he is then likely to be allowed to go home.
"I want to get better, get in better shape and be back in the car driving. That's my life, so that's the only thing I want to get back in my life at the moment," he added.
Talking about the incident, which happened during the second Saturday qualifying session, Massa said: "I don't remember anything.
"I just remember when I spoke to Rob Smedley, my race engineeer. He asked me: 'Do you remember Rubens in qualifying two?' I said: 'No. I don't remember my Q2. I remember being behind Rubens but then I don't remember anything else anymore.
"Maybe I was there, but I was not doing anything. So it was a very strange feeling. But that's my dream now.
"It's difficult to explain what happened. Everyone knows what happened, but for me it's a little bit more difficult to explain."
Massa's personal doctor Dino Altmann said on Monday: "He is to continue his recovery and return to racing as soon as possible, that's the plan. He is in a very good mood, good shape, and he just wants to come back soon."
Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher has been brought out of F1 retirement by Ferrari to race in Massa's place and will have the first race of his comeback in the European Grand Prix in Valencia on 23 August.
The German, a team-mate of Massa during his final F1 season in 2006, will stand in until the Brazilian is ready to take up the seat again.
"I raced with Michael previously and he gave me a lot of good advice. Michael knows everything he needs to do," said Massa.
"I'm sure he will do very good job with my car. I'm not in a position to say something to him."
By Adam Feneley
Motorsport Engineering
www.motorsportengineering.blogspot.com
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