Jarno Trulli: A Man of Many Passions
Jarno Trulli is rightly regarded as one of the fastest drivers
in Formula 1, but there is more to the Panasonic Toyota Racing
driver than his artistry behind the wheel.
The Italian lives in the public eye, courtesy of his success
in motorsport, but Jarno enjoys success off the track as well
as on it, with a young family and a growing wine business.
Jarno’s first passion is motorsport and he has devoted
his life to his art. His supreme pace over one lap is legendary
in Formula 1, but he is also a committed racer who has helped
Panasonic Toyota Racing move closer to the front.
After a rapid rise through junior racing, Jarno made his
Formula 1 debut as a fresh-faced – and fearsomely fast
– youngster, after being inspired to aim for the top
as a small boy. He explains: “I was four of five, quite
young and a Formula 1 car arrived in my home time as part
of a show, it was standing there and obviously I just wanted
to touch it and sit on it. That was my first contact with
Formula 1.
“My Formula 1 career started pretty young, when I was
22, at the Minardi team back in 1997. That was good because
for the first time I drove a Formula 1 car in a Grand Prix
race in Australia and that was a great moment.”
Since then, Jarno has spent a decade at the top of his game,
tasting the joy of victory, as well as several pole and podium
positions. He has also experienced fulfilment away from the
race track, with his young family of wife Barbara and sons
Enzo (two) and Marco (10 months).
A happy home life is the perfect escape from the hectic Formula
1 lifestyle, and Jarno winds down by relaxing with his family
in their home in St Moritz, Switzerland.
“It is very important because obviously when you come
back from racing or testing I want to relax and sit with my
family,” Jarno says. “When you first get back,
it is always difficult because there is jet lag and a lot
of things to sort out but it is important to spend time with
your family.
“I think I just see the life in a different way. We
all have different personalities and having a family doesn’t
really change you too much, but you do understand a bit more
about certain things.”
With a young family of his own, Jarno is conscious of the
needs of others, in particular children, and he has leant
his support to the United Nations’ World Food Programme.
In 2004 he took part in a television campaign, urging people
to support the charity, which fights hunger throughout the
world. Jarno has a simple message: “Join the team, give
to the World Food Programme.”
For Jarno, family life also extends to his other business
– wine. He adds: “My region is rich in vineyards,
we have a long culture and passion for wine. Together with
my father we started the old business of my grandfather. It
is very different from Formula 1 and I am enjoying it.
“For us it’s a completely natural thing to do.
When my father suggested we do something away from racing
I thought ‘why not do that?’ It just made sense.
We bought some land and we started the business together with
some close friends.”
In 2000, Jarno bought the vineyard in the Podere Castorani
region of Italy. Although racing keeps Jarno away from the
day-to-day running of his vineyard, the 33-year-old has trusted
help in the shape of his father Enzo. Together, they have
expanded production from around 18,000 bottles a year, to
an impressive 600,000, and like the man who lends his name
to the best bottle, it travels far and wide.
“The year 2000 vintage was our first season,”
Jarno says. “It was also a really good season. It was
strange for me to drink a bottle of my own wine but I was
happy because it was produced from my land and my passion.
“It is a really good feeling, especially when people
appreciate the wine. In the beginning I was very careful and
tried not to get carried away but now when I hear people say
it is a good product I am very proud. It is great because
when I travel around the world to Australia, or to Canada
and many other places I find my wine!”
Jarno is a man of many passions and he has not lost track
of his roots in motorsport. Karting is a discipline which
sets many a racer on the road to Formula 1 glory, Jarno included,
and nowadays many youngsters start their career in a Trulli
kart, courtesy of Jarno’s own business.
Jarno’s primary passion remains Formula 1 and, like
wine producing, that requires every element in the process
to work in perfect unison. As a committed team player, Jarno
knows the important role his hard-working mechanics play in
his own success, saying: “It is a strong relationship
between a driver and his mechanics. Don’t forget that
our life is in their hands.
“They work very hard on my car, they make very few
mistakes and they have done a good job. There is a strong
relationship between us. I must admit I see them during the
season more than my family because we spend more time together.
We get on well, sometimes we go out for dinner, we laugh,
we smile and sometimes we cry together but that is part of
the job.”
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