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For a number of race team members, from drivers and race engineers to truckies and physios, Italy is their home Grand Prix. For them, there is no place like Monza.

It’s not just the incredible history which seems to hide among the trees in the royal park; Monza also lays claim to some of the finest restaurants on the Formula 1 calendar.

Ask Jarno his favourite food and he says simply: “I am Italian.” So the trip to Monza is a gastronomic feast, even if he has to be cautious over a race weekend to ensure he eats the right kind of food in the right quantities.

Pasta or steak is his usual favourite while at Monza the choice of restaurant is also clear. He is a regular visitor to the Hotel de la Ville right on the edge of the royal park, which boasts of having one of the best restaurants in Italy. Jarno’s verdict? “Very good.”

There were more serious matters for Jarno on Saturday night though. As part of his Abruzzo nel Cuore appeal to raise money for the victims of the Abruzzo earthquake, he hosted a charity auction.

On offer was memorabilia from Jarno, Giancarlo Fisichella, Brawn, Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull, Renault and Williams, as well as a unique Audemars Piguet watch designed and donated especially for the occasion, with a grand total of €300,000 raised to add to the €150,000 already generated.

Jarno has big plans for this money: “I want to help these people rebuild their lives and we will use the money to build something important for the community, like a new school or something like that. The damage caused by this earthquake is really incredible and I am doing all I can to improve the situation.”

Further donations can be made on www.abruzzonelcuore.org.

WEDDING BELLS

 

Panasonic Toyota Racing considers itself to be one of the friendliest teams in the paddock and it prides itself on giving guests and fans an inside look at Formula 1.

Dozens of Paddock Club guests every race have the chance to experience a little time watching sessions from the garage, gaining incredible insight into the work of a top Formula 1 team.

Other special guests also enjoy exclusive garage tours where they can explore the behind-the-scenes world of Formula 1 which is rarely shown on television.

So team guests are a regular feature of life in the race team but few team members can remember the last time a newly-married couple stopped by on their honeymoon.

But that is exactly what happened in Monza. A pair of devoted Toyota Formula 1 fans had planned their honeymoon around the Italian Grand Prix and to make their weekend even more special, they were given a rare chance to enter the paddock.

Paddock passes are extremely hard to get hold of but an unexpected opportunity arose to give the British couple a short tour behind the scenes. Consider it a very special wedding gift from Panasonic Toyota Racing!

STAYING SAFE

Timo likes a challenge and in the days before the Italian Grand Prix he took on the ‘eSafety Challenge’ in Vallelunga.

As a Formula 1 driver whose job is to push his car to the very limit while always staying in control, he was the perfect person to show off Toyota’s innovative eSafety technologies.

The ‘eSafety Challenge’ was a two-day event, joined by Toyota, to demonstrate new technologies in the field of safety, particularly those which provide information to drivers in order to reduce the risk or severity of an accident.

Timo’s task on Tuesday was to demonstrate Toyota’s Pre-Crash Safety System on the new Prius. This system uses radar to detect obstacles on the road ahead and warns the driver if it detects a strong possibility of a collision. If the driver does not take action, the system automatically applies the brakes.

Timo has the lightening reactions necessary to be a top Formula 1 driver, as well as a whole team behind him ensuring his safety, but he was quick to see the benefits of this system.

“I’m lucky because I have a team of experts who don’t compromise on my safety when I am racing and normal drivers should have the same peace of mind, which these technologies offer,” he said.