After being pitted in a head-to-head battle against Kevin Magnussen for the final seat at the Renault F1 Team, it has been confirmed that Jolyon Palmer will remain at the team for 2017.
Jolyon Palmer to stay with Renault for 2017
Palmer, 25, made his Formula 1 debut for Renault in 2016 at the Australian Grand Prix after previously acting as the third driver for the Lotus F1 Team in 2015. So far in 2016, Palmer has 1 point to his name, secured through a tenth place finish at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
With the French outfit confirming that they were looking for two ‘top drivers’ for 2017 in August, a large amount of strain was placed on Palmer and Magnussen, with Renault being set on securing a big name for the future.
This big name came in the form of Nico Hulkenberg, who will leave Force India to join Renault in 2017. Up until recently however, a large amount of speculation still surrounded the final seat at the team, with a number of drivers such as Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Ocon being rumored to be in talks with the team, alongside both Palmer and Magnussen.
Over the course of the 2016 Formula 1 Season, Jolyon Palmer has been under development, gradually improving race by race, with this being an influencing factor for Renault to retain the British driver for what will be a second season at the team.
When asked about the subject, Palmer said that he was ‘over the moon‘ to be driving for Renault for a second season. Palmer added that ‘it’s been a steep learning curve driving in Formula 1 and I know that I am performing better than ever, and that there’s still more to come.’
Palmer’s team mate, Kevin Magnussen, has been confirmed at the Haas F1 Team for 2017, where he will stay for two seasons. 2017 will mark Magnussen’s third full season in Formula 1.
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