SPARKY: Toyota 2006 Preview

2005 was a breakthrough year for Toyota, poles, podiums and at the end of the season 4th in the constructors’, not bad for a team which used to run parallel with Sauber, Jaguar and dare I say it, Minardi! So we made a step forward, which on the face of it was pretty easy considering our budget, talent and commitment the team had during the season. But Formula One isn’t about looking back; it’s about looking forward, which is why Toyota cannot sit back on its success’ of 2005.

Toyota’s TF106 has been pretty average in testing, its run reliability and its set times and its completed hundreds of miles, which is good. It’s everything we would expect from a team like Toyota, and that’s the problem. Honda, who at the start of 2005 was behind, has overtaken Toyota. Honda haven’t just moved forward, they are almost at the front with one of the strongest driver line-ups around and a quick car which I expect to see in the top 2 rows of every grid this season. Toyota at this stage, and using winter testing as a guide are the fifth quickest team (that’s behind Renault, Honda, Ferrari and McLaren) with Williams’ looking like our main contender. To me, that’s disappointing as Toyota looked to have the edge early on last December with the team testing their TF106 whilst everyone else ran 2005 hybrids.

The main change for Toyota has been tyres, and although the team has tested hundreds of miles on Bridgestone rubber, it seems getting the car to work with the tyre has been a difficult issue. Yet, the upgraded TF106 seems to have made a tiny improvement, but not as much as I would have liked. Toyota needs to be in the top three, just behind Renault and level with Honda, but they are simply lagging behind.

Thus, enough of the moans, there’s still hope. Toyota plan on bringing out the TF106B in Monaco, whilst continuing to update the TF106 on a regular basis. Therefore like last year the car we start off with shouldn’t be the car we end up with and the B spec normally gives us a much needed boast. Hopefully this years B spec will be a challenge to whatever Renault or Honda have up their sleeve because Toyota cannot afford to drop back.

The new rules, which include a complicated yet more exciting qualifying system and the return to tyre changes are the two most noticeable changes for 2005. This should favour Toyota and Jarno Trulli. Jarno’s blistering qualifying laps should again see him near the front of the grid, and now with tyre changes, he should be able to drive every lap at 110% without going on the economy run. Toyota’s tyre supplier Bridgestone know how to build sprint like tyres, and their ability in the wet could also be a helping hand, lets us hope they don’t do another Belgium mickey take.

Toyota’s aims for 2006… at this stage, we haven’t got that winning car, we have a car for 5th place, in the points, solid finisher. Maybe our reliability will help us early on, but into the later stages of 2005 we’ll need more than a good engine to move us forward. Hopefully by mid season, we will see those podiums, and before the end, a victory or two. Can we remain in front of Honda? It doesn’t look like it. Can we be the top Bridgestone runner? Possibly.