2008 Drivers – Part 6/11: Toyota

Jarno Trulli
Nationalites: Italian
DOB: 13/07/74
Races: 184
Wins: 1
Podums: 7
Pole Positions: 3
Total Career Points: 183

Timo Glock
Nationality: German
DOB : 18/03/82
Races: 4
Wins: 0
Podiums: 0
Pole Positions: 0
Total Career Points: 2

More was expected from Toyota in 2007, but this year they claim they’re making a vast improvement. They’ve kept hold of Jarno Trulli, one of the more experienced drivers in the field. After winning the German Grand Prix Championship in 1996, Jarno was taken by Minardi for the 1997 season. After Olivier Panis broke his legs in a heavy crash in Canada, Jarno was drafted in to the Prost team to replace him, and scored his first points in the German GP. He would race for Prost for two more years, scoring eight points, including his first podium finish – second place in the GP of Europe in 1999. In 2000, he went to Jordan, and then to Renault two years later. It was with Renault in 2003 where Jarno finally scored his first podium finish, again at the German GP. His first and only race win came at Monaco in 2004, where he scored 46 points, a career high.

For the last two races of 2004, he went to Toyota, and that is where he has stayed. He scored three podiums in the first five races of 2005, and got Toyota’s first ever pole position. (This pole position happened to be the USA GP of 2005, where hardly anybody started.) From an improved car, Jarno is hoping to better last season’s tally of just 8 points.

PREDICTION: 12th

Timo Glock’s name may ring a few bells with some people. He raced briefly with Jordan in 2004. He replaced Giorgio Pantano for the Canadian GP, and finished 11th. However, this was promoted to 7th, and 2 points, when Williams and Toyota were disqualified for brake irregularities. He raced the final three races of the season, also with Jordan, finishing 15th in each one. Since then, he went to Champ Car in the US, and then GP2, and makes his debut with Toyota as reigning GP2 champion.

Timo was the subject of a bizarre crash at the French GP2 race in 2007, when he qualified pole, just in front of teammate Andreas Zuber. At the start, the two made their way to the centre of the track, where they promptly hit each other, and both retired. Timo’s inexperience may hinder him, but Toyota promise a better car.

PREDICTION: 15th