Zoom Trulli keen to put Silverstone behind him

Jarno Trulli and the Toyota team were not particularly upbeat after finishing seventh at the recent British Grand Prix, particularly as the Italian veteran had qualified fourth. However he and the team are looking forward to the forthcoming German Grand Prix, something of a home race for the Cologne-based squad.

“Well, I am Italian so my home Grand Prix is always Monza but as part of the Toyota team I have a few other ‘second home' races and Germany is one of them,” Trulli said. “The Nurburgring is really close to the factory so it's a special race for a lot of the guys in the team - including (team-mate) Timo (Glock) - and we really want to do well there. It's nice when we can see our fans and colleagues from the factory in the grandstands and that makes us even more determined to deliver a stronger performance than Silverstone.”

Heading to the next race, Trulli is a solid fifth in drivers’ championship with 21.5 points, 14 behind Mark Webber and 5.5 ahead of Felipe Massa.

“I have some great memories of the Nurburgring, particularly back in 1999 when I was on the podium for the first time,” Trulli recalls. “That was a wet race and the conditions were really difficult but, even though I didn't have the most competitive car, (the Prost Peugeot) I pushed to the maximum and finished second.”

With five points finishes from the eight races to date, the Toyota racer is hoping for a dry event. “The weather at the Nurburgring is always a question mark because it is in the hills and surrounded by forest,” he explained. “Even though one of my best races at the track was in the wet, I hope it stays dry for the race this year but it's difficult to predict. As with most races this year we should have a few new items on the car at the Nurburgring which are expected to bring improved performance.”

Earl ALEXANDER
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