Europe: Fond memories for Ralf and Jarno

By Nick Sparkes
May 2 2006

This years European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring circuit in German sees Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher compete in his 150th Grand Prix. Not only that, it is Ralf’s home circuit which for him and Jarno hold some very special memories.

Although last year it is considered Toyota threw away a possible victory, and a certain podium after a disastrous first lap which saw Ralf Schumacher involved in a first corner accident and Jarno Trulli suffering a penalty because his mechanics were still on the grid after the 15 second warning, both Ralf and Jarno have fond memories of the Nürburgring circuit which they hope will bring them luck this time around.

Not only is this one of the first of two home races for Ralf Schumacher, its his 150th Grand Prix, and the closest race to the Cologne factory which houses the Panasonic Toyota Racing team. “I've always really enjoyed racing at the Nürburgring, which is always greatly affected by the weather. I won my first Formula Junior race at the track and I won the grand prix there in 2003. It will be great to have some of the people from the factory there. That support will be really appreciated so let's hope we can give them a result to cheer."

Ralf is optimistic for Sunday afternoon, and admits that although the TF106 wasn’t perfect at the start of the year, things are moving in the right direction. "We struggled on race day in Imola but our pace shows that we've made big steps forward since the start of the season. We initially struggled because our car concept made it difficult to get grip out of hard compounds in low temperatures. But we have worked hard on our set-up and we reaped the benefits for our podium in Melbourne. Now we hope to regain that good form with another good result at our home race.”

For Jarno Trulli the Nürburgring was the scene of the Italians first podium in that crazy 1999 European Grand Prix which saw no more than 7 different leaders. Like Ralf, Jarno raced on the circuit when he was racing in lower Formula’s, which the Italian feels is an advantage to securing a good result. “At the Nürburgring the weather will be a crucial factor and I am glad to know the circuit well from my time in German F3. That experience helps to predict what the weather could do and to plan strategy, as it did when I finished second in a rain-affected race there in 1999. It would of course be great to challenge that high again.”

But Jarno knows lady luck hasn’t been on his side all season, and hopes that with the Toyota employees on his side this weekend, he’ll be able to finally put some points on the score board. "I've had nothing but bad luck in the races so far this year so it's time for a change. Now that we have resolved our set-up problems we can concentrate on pushing the team forwards. Our pace has been improving in recent races so we will push hard to try and maintain that momentum. I know that the package is good and it would be especially satisfying to perform well in front of the massed ranks of Toyota employees and fans."