Toyota unveil the TF109

Unveiled during a special 'virtual' launch on Thursday morning, the TF109 looks strikingly different to its predecessors as a result of the major rules revamp for this season.

And on the back of a promising 2008, with Trulli scoring their first podium finish since the 2006 season as Toyota wound up in fifth place in the standings, the Italian driver is bullish about the work the team have done over the winter.

"I expect Toyota to be competitive again," said Trulli as Toyota unveiled their new TF109. "Beyond that I cannot say; we will have to wait and see what the first few races hold.

"I am a very confident person and I am always optimistic so again this season I have high hopes, but I know from my experience that whatever I say in the winter doesn't really count for much when the season starts - the important thing is what we do on the track.

"I hope I can fight for Toyota's first victory; that is my dream. Formula One is extremely competitive at the moment so I expect this season to be exciting and very interesting; I am looking forward to it."

He added: "I hope we can build on the progress we showed in 2008 and challenge for the team's first win. Formula One is a team game, you win and lose together, and Toyota did a very good job last year which allowed me to be competitive and fight at the front.

"I am full of hope for this season. You need to build strong foundations before you can win. It is like a house; you cannot start by building the roof.

"We have established the foundations and I believe we can build a winning team. In 2008 we made a huge improvement and took a big step in the right direction so I hope now this year we can be a top team. I am confident in my own ability so if I am given a competitive car I know I can deliver the results."

The 34-year-old from Pescara conceded, however, that the radical regulation changes that come into play in 2009 make it very hard to predict how strong each team will be.

"It is a big change and whenever you make a change like this, it is impossible to predict how it will affect each team," he added. "Toyota has the capability to adapt to these regulations as well or better than any other team so I am hoping it will give us a good opportunity.

"You can say I am cautiously optimistic. One thing is for sure, there will be bigger gaps between teams next season and bigger fluctuations in performance. It was so close last year because we had a period of quite stable rules, but always when you make a big change, the grid is spread out more, so I expect that will be the case this year."