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Even in the brief moments that he was a Minardi driver in 1997, much was expected of Jarno Trulli by those who knew of his speed and panache in karting where he had won national, European and, ultimately, world championships.
The previous year had marked only his first full season in cars, after graduation to six races in German F3 midway through 1995. In 1996 his press-on style earned him six victories and a clear-cut title. He was obviously a man going places.
Benetton chief Flavio Briatore had stepped in with a management contract, and after testing a Benetton, Trulli was placed with Minardi for his 1997 F1 debut. His first races revealed his flowing style, and when Prost's Olivier Panis broke his legs in Mont
Trulli remained with Prost for the following two seasons, but the team had lost momentum once again and he was consigned to an uphill struggle with an uncompetitive car. Having come so far, so soon, in 1997, he found the lack of success particularly tough
He moved to Jordan in 2000 but had two frustrating seasons with the Silverstone team and in 2002 he moved to the new Renault F1 team.
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