In an interview published on British website crash.net, veteran Jarno Trulli admitted that he might have been forced to end his F1 career at the end of last season.
He reveals that he has no trouble motivating himself for another year. Mike Gascoyne, who knows well the Italian, wanted him to join the Lotus challenge.
The Italian insists that the test in NASCAR with Michael Waltrip Toyota was merely to satisfy his curiosity.
"I did consider leaving [F1], and there were some options, but the NASCAR [test] was just a way to try something different," he maintains, "I had been driving a racing car for years and years, and I had never driven a GT or closed-cockpit car, but, eventually, the love for the open cockpit, and the feeling that you have in the open cockpit, was still inside me. It was too strong, so I was hoping always to get a good chance in F1. And looking at where F1 is heading, this is a good chance," explains Jarno Trulli.
"It is not a question of motivating yourself. You are motivated only if you love driving, and if you still think you can do something special. If you are still quick, you still feel that you can do something special on the track and get the best out of the car, so this motivates me."
"Obviously, I know I am going to face a very hard season, but there is always a challenge inside a challenge. And this is what a driver really has to look for. I know that I cannot think about winning a race for Lotus this year, but I can think that I can score the first point at the first race, and this will be a big achievement for me and the team. So there is still some good motivation," adds Jarno Trulli.
Jarno Trulli is proud to bring his experience to the famous Lotus name, which returns to F1 for the first time since 1994.
"I would say that an experienced driver is very important, and I have to give the right direction as quick and as well as possible because we have very little time, and the budget is not unlimited for a F1 team these days," the Italian reiterates.
"The next big challenge will be making a step forward in terms of aero updates, which will probably come in Barcelona, then again after five or six races. Obviously we know it is not going to be easy and we are running out of time. What we have done, and the guys have achieved, is great - I have a lot of respect for the people who have been working on this project - but, on the other hand, for this year, we have to be very realistic. We know that we are heading to Bahrain and have to deal with a lot of troubles and solve the problems, but the most important thing is that we stick together and be patient," declares the italian driver.
"For the first year, we have to be reliable, decent and show good progress. We cannot believe that we will be on top straight away - that is unrealistic," concludes Jarno Trulli.
He reveals that he has no trouble motivating himself for another year. Mike Gascoyne, who knows well the Italian, wanted him to join the Lotus challenge.
The Italian insists that the test in NASCAR with Michael Waltrip Toyota was merely to satisfy his curiosity.
"I did consider leaving [F1], and there were some options, but the NASCAR [test] was just a way to try something different," he maintains, "I had been driving a racing car for years and years, and I had never driven a GT or closed-cockpit car, but, eventually, the love for the open cockpit, and the feeling that you have in the open cockpit, was still inside me. It was too strong, so I was hoping always to get a good chance in F1. And looking at where F1 is heading, this is a good chance," explains Jarno Trulli.
"It is not a question of motivating yourself. You are motivated only if you love driving, and if you still think you can do something special. If you are still quick, you still feel that you can do something special on the track and get the best out of the car, so this motivates me."
"Obviously, I know I am going to face a very hard season, but there is always a challenge inside a challenge. And this is what a driver really has to look for. I know that I cannot think about winning a race for Lotus this year, but I can think that I can score the first point at the first race, and this will be a big achievement for me and the team. So there is still some good motivation," adds Jarno Trulli.
Jarno Trulli is proud to bring his experience to the famous Lotus name, which returns to F1 for the first time since 1994.
"I would say that an experienced driver is very important, and I have to give the right direction as quick and as well as possible because we have very little time, and the budget is not unlimited for a F1 team these days," the Italian reiterates.
"The next big challenge will be making a step forward in terms of aero updates, which will probably come in Barcelona, then again after five or six races. Obviously we know it is not going to be easy and we are running out of time. What we have done, and the guys have achieved, is great - I have a lot of respect for the people who have been working on this project - but, on the other hand, for this year, we have to be very realistic. We know that we are heading to Bahrain and have to deal with a lot of troubles and solve the problems, but the most important thing is that we stick together and be patient," declares the italian driver.
"For the first year, we have to be reliable, decent and show good progress. We cannot believe that we will be on top straight away - that is unrealistic," concludes Jarno Trulli.