Jarno Trulli

Name: Jarno Trulli
Born: July 13, 1974 in Pescara, Italy
Team: Toyota
Height: 5'7"
Weight: 132 lbs.
Hobbies: Music, Karting, Fitness, Swimming, Tennis, Cycling

Previous F1 Teams:
    * 1997 Minardi - Prost
    * 1998 - 1999 Prost
    * 2000 - 2001 Jordan
    * 2002 - 2004 Renault - Toyota
    * 2004 - 2008 Toyota
Victories: 1

Background:
Jarno was a fan of Formula 1 from the age of four, and started karting at age seven. From 1987 to 1995 he won just about every major title available in karting, from national to European championships and from the North American championship to the world karting championship. In 1996 he won the German F3 series, and the following year he joined Minardi in Formula 1. In June, after Olivier Panis broke both legs in an accident at the Canadian Grand Prix, Prost hired Trulli from Minardi to replace the Frenchman.

His Career Thus Far:
In his first year in Formula 1 he led the Austrian Grand Prix at the Prost team, and he should have won the race but the engine broke down. No one knew it at the time, but it would be a foreshadowing of the bad luck that would follow Trulli for several years.

Although he is recognized as one of the fastest drivers on a single lap - and has three pole positions to show for it - it took until the Monaco Grand Prix of 2004 for Trulli to score his first victory. Despite that success, his Renault team was disappointed in his results later that summer, and he was fired from the team. He joined Toyota and raced in the last two races that year, in Japan and Brazil.

Driving Style:
In addition to his string of bad luck, there is a another side to his reputation for being fast on a single lap when the track is all clear. Although he has been improving recently, Trulli often finds it difficult to race in the pack and jostle for position. A smooth master of the single-lap performance, he is restless in the pack and does not shine in climbing up from the back of the grid, passing other drivers, and gaining positions at the start of a race.
Character:
Jarno is one of the warmest of the drivers, always ready to answer questions from journalists or fans in an intelligent, well-thought out manner with a smile. He is one of the rare drivers to enjoy the occasional glass of wine, and he even owns his own vineyard in Italy.