13/7/1974
Record updated 13-Jul-06
Trulli won National, European and World Championships in karting before moving to F3 and two years later to F1. Currently drivers for the Toyota Formula One Team.
Trulli started in karts at the age of seven eventually becoming a works driver. He won everything there was to win but the next step proved illusive as he struggled to find the financial backing. Then, in 1995, he received a call from the German F3 KMS team who offered him a free drive. Trulli made the most of the opportunity, wining two of the six races he competed in as well as being crowned rookie of the year. After only half a season driving a Formula car, his results were impressive enough for three F1 teams to come calling. Trulli chose to go with Benetton who offered him a full season in the German F3 Championship with the KMS team. Trulli won the Championship and became Benetton's Junior team Champion.
In 1997 he planned to race F3000 in Japan, but a call from Minardi gave him the unexpected opportunity to race in Formula One for half a season. It was all the introduction he needed; the next year he joined Prost, where he remained until 1999. In his first season with the team he led the Austrian Grand Prix before engine failure robbed him of Grand Prix victory. In 1999 he finished second in Nurburgring - his first F1 podium.
After 2 years with the Jordan Team in 2000-2001, when Jarno finished 10th and 9th respectively in the World Drivers Championship, in 2002 Jarno joined the newly created Renault F1 Team, formerly Benetton. A tough year of car unreliability and bad luck followed, as the new team found its feet, but Jarno was still able to finish the season in 8th place in the WDC, with 9 points. Still with Renault F1 in 2003, Jarno had his best season in F1 so far: he was still in 8th place in the WDC but this time with 33 points. The high point of 2003 was Jarno's third place podium finish in the European GP at Hockenheim. In 2004, Jarno continued with the Renault F1 Team and after a third place podium finish in Spain, his first race win came in Monaco, 23rd May 2004.
After a series of races without the possibility of scoring any points for Renault in the summer of 2004, Jarno split with the team in September and immediately joined Panasonic Toyota Racing for the rest of 2004, 2005 and 2006 Jarno still came 6th in the WDC with 46 points.
After achieving Panasonic Toyota Racing's first front row start by qualifying second in Australia, Jarno repeated that feat for the next race, the 2005 Malaysian Grand Prix. Then, maintaining his position throughout the race, Jarno scored Panasonic Toyota Racing's historic first podium with his second place at Sepang, behind Renault's Fernando Alonso.
Jarno followed this up with two more podiums, second place in Bahrain and third place in Spain. He also achieved Toyota's first pole position at the ill-fated USA race. After a second half to the season of mixed fortunes, Jarno nevertheless achieved 7th place in the WDC with 43 points, having helped his Toyota team to 4th place in the Constructors' Championship, an improvement on 8th place the previous year.