Trulli targets victory

In the middle of 2003 Trulli was the dominant driver in the Renault team, despite the stellar reputation of team-mate Fernando Alonso who won in Hungary in the latter part of the season. But if there was bad luck to befall a driver in the team, it fell on Trulli. Now, following the launch of the Renault R24, the Italian believes he may finally be about to break his duck.

"I know that I can do it," said Trulli, "it's just a matter of getting it right and not losing the opportunity. I will not get sad if I lose the opportunity unless it's my fault. If it's my fault I will blame me, but if it is not I cannot do much about it. You just have to wait for the next race.

"I think what Fernando [Alonso] achieved was great, he had a really good season. He's a nice person, I work very well with him. It's just a shame that I've lost opportunities that were not my fault. You can accept it when you make mistakes, you cannot hide in Formula 1 [when it is driver error] because it is clear. But sometimes it was disappointing when I lost opportunities, which he got. But this year I will try to turn it around."

Trulli is good friends with Alonso and refuses to be drawn into a comparison with his team-mate, who enjoyed a hugely successful 2003 campaign. But Trulli believes his qualifying record, which was on average higher than Alonso's last year, proves that he has the speed and it is only a matter of time before it all comes together.

"I think we are pretty much the same, we get on very well together, we work in the same direction and the team is completely open," he said. "I think the fact that we talk to each other is good, because our comments are very similar and it makes a good atmosphere in the team. We can work well to improve the car and improve the performance."