Indeed, aside from a single outing with Toleman and a one-season dalliance with Scuderia Italia in 1992, Martini's entire Formula One career was spent with the Italian outfit. He raced with the minnow team in three different stints, drove for them on their debut in 1985, scored their first point in the 1988 Detroit Grand Prix, and their only front-row start at the 1990 United States Grand Prix (where unexpected rain on Saturday meant that the grid was decided entirely by times from Friday's session. Pirelli's soft qualifying tyres caught Goodyear off guard, and the Italian manufacturer put five of its teams in the top ten positions). Both Martini and Minardi led a race for a single lap at the 1989 Portuguese Grand Prix, and their joint-best finish was 4th at the 1991 San Marino Grand Prix and 1991 Portuguese Grand Prix, the latter being Martini's single finish on the lead lap. Initially out of a drive for 1993, he was recalled back to the little Italian team midway through the season in place of Fabrizio Barbazza, Martini impressed by outpacing his young team mate Christian Fittipaldi.