Trulli smooth F1 racing with Mild Seven

Fast cars, fine wine, football and fantastic women, too. At first glance, these interests make Jarno Trulli stereotypically Italian. Take note, however, Jarno Trulli is definitely no ordinary Italian.

He makes a living speeding down straight-aways at more than 320 kph, negotiating the toughest hairpins in the world, and enduring gravitational forces of up to 3gs. Welcome to what is just another ordinary day for a professional Formula One (F1) race car driver.

Regarded in racing circles as one of the most naturally talented drivers with a reputation for milking every ounce of speed out of the cars that he drives, Trulli is one of four drivers in the stable of the Mild Seven-Renault Formula One racing team.

That Trulli should make a living out of trying to beat 20 other cars to the finish line should come as no surprise. After all, he began karting in 1983 when he was only nine years old. Over his 13 years in karting, Trulli compiled victories in the Italian, European and North American circuits which earned him a slot in the Karting World Championships in 1991 and 1994. The height of his karting career was when he was crowned world champion in 1994.

In 1995, Trulli raised the Italian Karting Championship trophy for the first time as he moved up to Formula Three racing. Trulli’s winning streak continued on the F3 circuit as he finished fourth and eventually bagged the German Formula Three Championship in 1996 and 1997.

Having proven his mettle in F3, Trulli moved up to Formula One (F1) racing in 1997. Although constantly plagued by car and engine problems, Trulli earned the respect of the F1 community because of his tenacious driving style, always threatening to pass the cars ahead of him. Competing at what is considered the pinnacle of racing, Trulli has never been at a loss for a team. He has driven for reputable F1 teams such as Minardi, Prost, Jordan, and currently with the Mild Seven-Renault F1 Team.

With the glitz and glamour plus the hefty paycheck that is part and parcel of being a professional racer, it is easy to understand why Trulli has one very enviable job. But along with this fame and fortune comes responsibility. Lots of it.

Although Trulli had already been well respected as early as when he was finishing at the top of the kart racing roster (before he eventually moved up to be one of the top F1 drivers), it is his charitable and amiable disposition that inspires even more admiration. Two of his most notable advocacies are eradicating landmines and caring for less fortunate children. Such is the mission of the modern professional athlete — to reach out and make a difference both inside and outside his sport.

A constant part of Trulli’s schedule includes fundraising football matches and visiting children. One of these driver charity football matches was held before the Monaco Grand Prix (GP) wherein even world number one driver Michael Schumacher participated.

In yet another driver charity football event prior to the Australian GP, Trulli, Mild Seven-Renault teammate Fernando Alonso, and other top drivers, teamed up to battle an all-star team composed of Australian athletes and celebrities. The sell-out crowd gladly forked out a total of US$100,000 for landmine victims.

During the last Christmas break in his hometown, Trulli eased his foot off the pedal and worked on a checkered soccer ball for the Marco di Martino charity — named after one of Trulli’s childhood friends, Marco di Martino, who died in a vehicular accident a few years ago.

Come this November, eight lucky Filipinos will have the chance to see and meet Trulli live as he struts his stuff in the Malaysian GP. Mild Seven, one of Trulli’s global sponsors, will be giving away eight all-expense-paid trips to the Sepang Formula One race circuit in Malaysia plus 1,000 Malaysian Ringgit in pocket money as the grand prize for its "F1 Slipstream" raffle promo. Other prizes for the promo include mountain bikes, jackets and backpacks. Other premium items will also be given away.

As the premier educators for F1 in the Philippines, Mild Seven has already mounted a string of successful promos carrying F1 racing themes. In 2001, the company mounted the event "Mild Seven F1 SPEEDshow" which introduced local racing aficionados to the R201 race car. Last year, the focal point of the Mild Seven event entitled "Mild Seven XLR8: The Mild Seven F1 Experience" was Jenson Button, the first F1 race driver to visit the Philippines and is one of the top ten race car drivers in the world, and the R202 race car.