Zoom A well-deserved podium for Trulli and Toyota

Starting from fourth position on the grid, Jarno Trulli gained a place at the start of the 70-lap French Grand Prix and fought hard to hold off Heikki Kovalainen's McLaren in the closing stages to record Toyota's first podium finish for over two years.

Timo Glock started eighth on the grid, made a strong getaway and moved up two places and ran as high as third. Glock however suffered graining after first pit stop and lost ground and brought the car home 11th.

Jarno Trulli
"What a great result and a great weekend by the whole team. We were pushing really hard because we wanted to dedicate this result to Ove Andersson, who has done so much for Toyota Motorsport. Today was a great race, hard and tough. We had a good pace, even if we had to battle with some cars that were quicker than us. I had to fight really hard but that is what people should expect both from myself and from Toyota. When the rain came at the end I had to take care because it's always difficult to judge how bad it is when you're in front. But I got back into a rhythm and had a wheel-to-wheel fight with Heikki, just like in go-karts. The team made no mistakes this weekend, from the people in the factory who made the new parts on the car to the mechanics who did perfect pit stops today. There's still more to do but today we can be very satisfied. The team is doing a great job, the car is much more competitive and everyone is motivated. Things are moving on."

Timo Glock
"That was a difficult day for me. I made a good start, the car felt good for the first stint and I was able to push hard. But after the pit stop I struggled to maintain the same pace because I had some tyre graining and I then had major understeer. That meant the car was sliding around for much of the race. It didn't work out for us in terms of strategy either. I lost ground at each of the pit stops and in the end we just dropped out of the points. Still it's great for Jarno to take third place and the podium, a perfect result for him and the team. We have clearly made progress since the last test and our pace means I am determined to come away with better results in the coming races."

John Howett, Toyota Motorsport President
"This is a fantastic day for everyone involved with Toyota Motorsport. It was our first podium for a long time so we dedicate it to Ove Andersson, who did so much for the team and will be greatly missed. Congratulations to everyone involved both at the factory and in the race and test teams who have worked hard to improve the car. We had a good test in Barcelona last week and today Jarno did a phenomenal job. It was an incredible battle in the closing laps but Jarno's very experienced and it was a clean fight, which was good to see.”