Trulli: Toyota boosted by points run

Jarno Trulli says his continued run of good results has given the Toyota team a morale boost for the rest of the season.

The Italian retired from the Australian Grand Prix when running in fifth, but went on to finish in fourth in Malaysia and scored points again today with a sixth place in Bahrain.

Trulli was very happy to be the `best of the rest`, as he reckons it was the best possible position today.

“I`m delighted with another finish in the top six today - both for myself and for the team who worked very well and did a good job,” said Trulli, who has already scored the same amount of points that in all of 2007.

“We finished right behind the top three teams so that is the most we could expect from this weekend.

“I made a strong start and I was able to gain a couple of places into the first corner. I briefly came under pressure from Nico Rosberg early on but then I started to do my race. The car was well balanced, I knew I was quick and we had a good strategy so I just got my head down.

“The car`s pace was very strong, both cars finished and we looked very competitive. This result gives us a boost for the future. We will now head to the test in Barcelona looking to build on this in preparation for the next race.”

Teammate Timo Glock also had a good race, although the German finished just outside the points in ninth place.

Glock admitted he was feeling much more comfortable with his car and was pleased with his first race finish on the year.

“That was a good race today and overall I was happy with the car,” said Glock. “It was a big improvement for my driving style and I also made some small adjustments during the race which helped. The early laps were interesting with all the guys around me crashing into each other.

“That made it tricky with the oil in the first and middle sectors. We could have made the points but I lost speed when I was chasing Nico Rosberg in the middle of the race.

“It was quite hard to fend off Fernando Alonso after that but in the end I`m happy to have finished. The car was really good in terms of set-up, now we just have to keep working on improving the rest.”

6.4.2008   ▪ Formula One    ▪ Toyota, Trulli    ▪ www.autosport.com