On the back of his impressive fourth place in Malaysia,
Jarno Trulli admits it will take another ‘perfect weekend' for Toyota to figure so strongly again in Bahrain for the third round of the 2008
Formula 1 World Championship – but he is far from ruling out the Japanese manufacturer's chances.
The Italian's haul of points in Sepang catapulted him up into eighth spot in the drivers' standings – and Toyota into the top six in the constructors' title chase – and came after he had mixed it race-long with the two McLaren-Mercedes' of
Heikki Kovalainen and
Lewis Hamilton. What's more, the Cologne-based squad was one of only two teams – along with
Ferrari – to test at Sakhir in the run-up to the season, covering 900 laps there over the course of six days.
Trulli boasts a strong record around the desert track, finishing three of the four grands prix held there inside the points and racing to what was at the time only
Toyota's second rostrum finish in the top flight, courtesy of the runner-up spot in 2005.
“The main topic in Bahrain is obviously braking,” the 33-year-old explained of the challenge that lies ahead for the drivers and teams this weekend. “There is a lot of hard braking at the end of the long straights, and to have a competitive car you need good braking stability.
“With the high temperatures as well, the brakes are really under stress. Top speed is also very important at this track because of the long straights, and our challenge on Friday will be to find a set-up which gives high top speed and also suitable downforce for the corners.
“I had a fantastic result in Malaysia, which was great for the whole team, so we are all very motivated and looking forward to the next race. It will not be easy to repeat the result we had in Malaysia – we will need another perfect weekend – but we have shown that the new car is a big improvement and we are able to challenge for the top six. We had a productive test in Bahrain in February, so I expect to be competitive and score more points.”
