Renault F1's Palmer says he's driving as well as when he won GP2
Jolyon Palmer believes he is driving as well as he did when he won the 2014 GP2 title, despite enduring a frustrating start to life in Formula 1 with Renault
Palmer has yet to score a point in what has been a difficult season for the French manufacturer, returning to F1 this year following its takeover of Lotus.
The 25-year-old is fighting to retain his place with Renault for 2017, and feels he has raised his game mentally and technically to eliminate mistakes in recent months.
"I feel like I turned a corner after Monaco," Palmer told Autosport.
"I started well in Melbourne, but the next few races were more difficult for me, with Monaco a tough weekend [crashing out in the wet].
"But after that, pace-wise I've been there or thereabouts, and with every race I've been getting stronger and stronger.
"I'm getting more consistent, and I feel like I'm driving to a similar level to that when I was winning GP2, but now in F1.
"So I feel like I'm driving really well without making many mistakes."
On what has made the difference, Palmer added: "I have understood the car a bit better, how to get the most out of it.
"After Monaco I also just needed a bit of a reset mentally.
"So between those two I've been able to improve myself continuously to the point that I feel like I'm doing a good, consistent job."
Palmer, however, did make a key error in the penultimate race before the summer break in Hungary when he spun out whilst in the points, which added to his irritation.
He also had to pit at the end of the first lap in the German Grand Prix following contact with Felipe Massa's Williams, but overall can sense he has made gains and caught up with the rest of the field.
"It's been frustrating, especially how I know I was driving in GP2 when I won it," said Palmer.
"In the early races I was making a few too many mistakes, sometimes a step behind really.
"In Hungary I spun out of 10th place, which was a massive shame. One corner in the whole race I got wrong, but apart from that I felt like I was dragging the best out of the car.
"In F1 it is more complicated when you have all the different FP1 sessions, the car evolves through the weekend, the track evolves through the weekend.
"The competition is constantly finding the gains and you've got to keep with it.
"But I feel like I've learned a lot and that I'm driving really well."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
McLaren's Alonso sure some F1 teams will get new rules wrong
Formula 1 peaked in 2000s, not Senna/Prost era, Alonso believes
How Hamilton has battled his own mentality
F1 driver mid-season swaps - Schumacher, De Vries, Verstappen and more
Nico Hulkenberg says he did not 'slack' alongside Jolyon Palmer in F1
How Palmer impressed McLaren
What could have been: When Villeneuve’s shock return thwarted an F1 rookie
Friday favourite: Renault's original F1 title-winner that began the Alonso era
Why Renault's survivor wasn't part of Alpine's plans
Peugeot surprised by severity of WEC Balance of Performance hit
Audi a player, not a spectator, in F1 driver market - Sauber
Mercedes joins Williams and RB with 'quick and cheap' F1 cockpit airflow upgrades
Alpine gets F1 spare car for first time in 2024 as lighter chassis appears in China
Why F1 2026 worst case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments