Jolyon Palmer

Jolyon Palmer
Born	Jolyon Carlyle Palmer (1991-01-20) January 20, 1991 United Kingdom
Occupation(s)	Racing driver, broadcaster
Years active	2005–2017 (racing)
Known for	Formula One driver (2016–2017), 2014 GP2 Series champion, Formula One broadcaster

Jolyon Carlyle Palmer (born 20 January 1991) is a retired British racing driver and former broadcaster who participated in Formula One between 2016 and 2017. Following his retirement from active competition, Palmer has taken on roles as a pundit for broadcasters including the BBC, Channel 4, and F1TV.

Prior to his media involvement, Palmer secured the title in the 2014 GP2 Series. He competed with the Renault Sport F1 Team, making his debut in 2016 and earning his first World Championship points at the 2016 Grand Prix. He continued racing for Renault through the 2017 season.

Palmer is the son of ex-Formula One driver and UK race circuit proprietor Jonathan Palmer. His education includes attending Dorset House School, Cranleigh School, and graduating from the University of Nottingham in 2012 with a bachelor's degree in Management Studies. In 2015, he served as a test driver for the Lotus F1 Team before obtaining a full-time racing position when Renault resumed manufacturer support.

After Renault released him during the 2017 campaign, Palmer shifted to an analyst position within Formula One, working with BBC and the official F1 app alongside Jack Nicholls. He frequently writes columns for BBC Sport and hosts Jolyon Palmer's Analysis on Formula One’s official website following each Grand Prix weekend.

T Cars (2005–2007)

Palmer began his competitive career in MiniMax karting during 2004 before progressing to the Autumn Trophy of the T Cars championship in 2005, where he finished fifth with a total of 92 points, behind champion Adrian Quaife-Hobbs. The following year, he advanced to the primary T Cars championship, achieving one pole position and four podium finishes, ultimately placing fifth with 101 points, trailing title winner Luciano Bacheta. In a subsequent Autumn Trophy series, Palmer won four out of six races and secured victories in both events he contested in 2007 prior to concentrating on Formula Palmer Audi.

Formula Palmer Audi (2007–2008)

In 2007, Palmer entered the series established by his father, Jonathan Palmer. Starting from twelfth on the grid at Silverstone, he progressed to claim two race wins at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park, along with two pole positions at Brands Hatch, concluding the season tenth overall. His campaign was abruptly interrupted by a serious quad bike accident that resulted in significant injuries including loss of one kidney and a punctured lung.

Returning for the 2008 season as a championship contender, Palmer secured one victory at Spa, amassed eleven podium finishes, and earned three pole positions, finishing third overall—22 points adrift of champion Jason Moore. Additionally, he achieved third place in both the Autumn Trophy and FPA Shootout series, collecting three podiums from six races.

FIA Formula Two (2009–2010)

Palmer stepped up to compete in the FIA Formula Two Championship in 2009, piloting car number three. His best result that year was sixth place at Imola. Returning for the 2010 season, he won the opening race at Silverstone, becoming the first British driver since his father in 1983 to win an F2 event. After finishing fifth at Marrakech, Palmer claimed two victories at Monza which propelled him into the championship lead. He ultimately finished second overall behind fellow British competitor Dean Stoneman. In 2011, Palmer made a one-off appearance at the Nürburgring but did not start either race.

2011 season

Palmer made his debut in the main GP2 Series championship in 2011, driving for Arden International alongside teammate Josef Král. He consistently finished within the top ten at circuits such as Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, and Valencia. Towards the end of the year, he switched to Barwa Addax for the non-championship GP2 Finals in Abu Dhabi, where he secured third and fourth place finishes, concluding his rookie GP2 campaign on a strong note.

2012 season

For the 2012 campaign, Palmer joined iSport International and was paired with Marcus Ericsson. Early in the season, electrical problems necessitated a chassis replacement, after which his performance improved significantly. Highlights included a sixth-place finish and his first GP2 victory in the Monaco sprint race. He also achieved a podium at Silverstone, breaking into the top ten overall; nevertheless, he ended the season 11th despite another podium result at Monza.

2013 season

In 2013, Palmer competed with Carlin, teaming up with 2011 British F3 Champion Felipe Nasr. He claimed victory in the Feature Race at the Hungaroring and dominated the Singapore round by securing pole position, fastest lap, and winning the Feature Race by a margin of 13 seconds over Nasr. Consistent top-three qualifying performances in the closing rounds helped him finish seventh in the overall standings.

2014 season

Palmer transitioned to DAMS for the 2014 GP2 Series and led pre-season testing sessions in Abu Dhabi. He began the season strongly by taking pole position and a podium in Bahrain’s opening race, followed by a Sprint Race win that put him at the top of the championship standings—a lead he sustained throughout the year. Among his additional triumphs was a victory in Monaco’s feature race.

At Hungary, Palmer engaged in intense on-track battles with Nasr across both races, which culminated in heightened tensions during the Sprint Race podium ceremony. At Monza, despite being penalized to start from last place due to a fuel infringement after qualifying fourth, he managed to recover to eighth in the Feature Race and then won the Sprint Race, further extending his championship advantage.

He secured the title prematurely at Sochi with his fourth win of the season and set a new record for total points scored in GP2 history. Reflecting on his achievement, Palmer credited his team’s unwavering consistency and expressed pride in joining an exclusive group of GP2 champions.

On 19 November, it was announced that Palmer would participate in testing for Sahara Force India F1 during the post-season session at Abu Dhabi on 25 November.

Force India (2014)

Palmer completed a test drive for Force India at Yas Marina Circuit on 25 November 2014 during the end-of-season test sessions.

Lotus (2015)

On 20 January 2015, Palmer was appointed as test and reserve driver for Lotus F1 Team, joining official drivers 2010 GP2 champion Pastor Maldonado and 2011 GP2 champion Romain Grosjean.

He made his first appearance in the Lotus E23 Hybrid during pre-season testing in Barcelona, completing 77 laps focused on data collection and car development. Despite cold weather conditions, he finished eighth overall. Alan Permane, Lotus Trackside Operations Director, commended Palmer’s performance under challenging circumstances.

Palmer made his Formula One Grand Prix weekend debut during Free Practice One at the 2015 Chinese Grand Prix, where he conducted aerodynamic evaluations and setup work to finish fifteenth on his initial visit to Shanghai’s circuit. At Bahrain, he improved to fourteenth place, trailing Maldonado by just 0.441 seconds. In Spain’s FP1 session, he recorded the thirteenth fastest time ahead of Maldonado and topped timing sheets during day two of Barcelona’s in-season test.

On 11 June 2015, it was confirmed that Palmer would participate in FP1 sessions for five European Grands Prix from Austria through Italy, substituting for Grosjean. He continued FP1 appearances at Austria and Britain—finishing fourteenth at his home event—before limited running at Hungary. At Spa-Francorchamps’ FP1 session, Palmer tested a new front wing design while Grosjean went on to secure third place in the Belgian Grand Prix.

Palmer’s final outing in the Lotus E23 came at Abu Dhabi’s season finale where technical difficulties restricted him to only ten minutes of track time.

Renault (2016–2017)

2016

On 23 October 2015, Palmer secured a full-time race seat with the Renault Sport F1 Team for the 2016 season, marking him as the first former FIA Formula Two driver to progress into Formula One. He teamed up with ex-McLaren racer Kevin Magnussen as Renault re-entered Formula One as a constructor following their acquisition of Lotus F1. At his first race in the Australian Grand Prix, Palmer qualified ahead of Magnussen and finished 11th, just missing out on championship points.

His campaign was disrupted by technical problems in Bahrain and China, yet he bounced back with 13th-place finishes in both Russia and Spain, outperforming his teammate Magnussen on these occasions. However, early retirements occurred in Monaco and Canada before he completed the European Grand Prix in Baku in 15th position. Among his notable results were 12th-place finishes in Austria and Hungary, narrowly falling short of points in the latter event. A collision forced him out of the German Grand Prix, but he led Renault’s charge at Belgium by finishing 15th. His race at Italy ended prematurely after contact with Felipe Nasr.

Palmer earned his first World Championship point in Malaysia by finishing 10th, ahead of Carlos Sainz's Toro Rosso. On 9 November 2016, Renault officially extended Palmer’s contract for the following season.

2017

At the conclusion of 2016, Kevin Magnussen departed Renault for Haas, with Nico Hülkenberg arriving from Force India as his replacement. The team unveiled its R.S.17 car in London on 22 January, prominently displaying Palmer’s race number 30 on its yellow and black design.

Palmer made his public debut with the R.S.17 during testing in Barcelona, securing the third-fastest time on the final day behind Ferrari and Red Bull drivers. Despite showing promise, after being informed he would lose his seat for the 2018 season, Palmer achieved his career-best finish of sixth place at the Singapore Grand Prix—his sole points-scoring result that year.

On 7 October 2017, Renault announced that Palmer would depart the team following the Japanese Grand Prix, with Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz Jr. taking over from the United States Grand Prix onwards. Seven years later, Palmer disclosed that Renault had not informed him prior to making the announcement public; he first became aware through media reports during the Singapore GP weekend and had to confirm it directly with team principal Cyril Abiteboul. He stated he was never given an explanation for Renault’s decision.

Media career after Formula One (2018)

On 22 February 2018, Palmer joined BBC Radio 5 Live’s Formula One commentary team as an expert analyst alongside Jack Nicholls and Jennie Gow. He has received acclaim for providing insightful commentary and a distinctive viewpoint drawn from his experience as a former driver. In addition to broadcasting, Palmer regularly authors post-race columns for the BBC website and contributes analytical content to formula1.com, breaking down racing incidents using multiple camera perspectives. He has also appeared as a guest presenter on Liberty Media’s F1 Live—a global post-race paddock show.

Palmer has been involved with Sky Sports F1 coverage, writing a GP2 Diary during his time competing in that series and serving as a regular co-commentator for GP2 races in 2015. Earlier, he provided commentary on FIA Formula Two Championship events alongside Jack Nicholls. In February 2020, he offered expert analysis during pre-season testing coverage ahead of that year’s Formula One season.

As of 2024, Palmer remains active as a colour commentator on F1 Live for F1 TV, BBC Sport, and Channel 4. He also hosts Jolyon Palmer's Analysis on F1 TV, where he reviews recent Formula One races in detail.

Additional motorsport engagements

Following his triumph in GP2, Palmer took part in the 2014 Race of Champions held at Bushy Park circuit in Barbados. Teaming up with DTM champion Pascal Wehrlein as part of Team Young Stars, they narrowly failed to progress beyond the group phase. Palmer experienced tight defeats against Robby Gordon and nine-time Le Mans victor Tom Kristensen but secured a victory over European F3 titleholder Esteban Ocon.

In the solo Race of Champions contest, Palmer was overcome by Kristensen, Wehrlein, and Indianapolis 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay. He made a return appearance at the 2015 Race of Champions in London, once again paired with Wehrlein. Their campaign ended in the quarter-finals after being bested by England’s touring car competitors Andy Priaulx and Jason Plato. In the individual segment, Palmer was narrowly defeated by GT racer Alex Buncombe.

Awards

On 4 December 2014, Palmer received the Guild of Motoring Writers Driver of the Year Award in London, an accolade determined by prominent motorsport journalists. Previous winners include legends such as Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher.

Additionally, he earned a nomination for the Autosport Awards British Competition Driver of the Year in 2014 but was ultimately surpassed by Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton.

In 2014, Palmer was also honored with the British Racing Drivers' Club Fairfield Trophy, recognizing exceptional performance throughout the year. The award ceremony featured distinguished guests including Lewis Hamilton, Damon Hill, and BRDC president Derek Warwick.

Personal life

Palmer is the son of former Formula One driver and owner of UK racing circuits Jonathan Palmer. His younger sibling, Will, claimed victory in the 2015 British BRDC Formula 4 Championship and secured the esteemed 2015 McLaren Autosport BRDC Award.

He is a supporter of both Ipswich Town F.C. and Crystal Palace F.C..

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2005	T Cars Autumn Trophy		6	?	?	?	?	92	5th
2006	T Cars	PalmerSport Junior	20	0	1	?	4	92	5th
	T Cars Autumn Trophy		6	4	3	4	5	61	1st
2007	Formula Palmer Audi		15	2	2	?	4	187	10th
	T Cars	PalmerSport Junior	2	2	1	2	0	24	11th
2008	Formula Palmer Audi		20	1	3	3	11	338	3rd
	Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy		6	0	0	0	3	89	3rd
	Formula Palmer Audi Shootout		6	0	0	0	1	36	3rd
2009	2009 FIA Formula Two Championship	MotorSport Vision	16	0	0	0	0	3	21st
	2009 Formula Palmer Audi season	MotorSport Vision (PalmerSport)	8	1	3	2	2	70	16th
2010	2010 FIA Formula Two Championship	MotorSport Vision	18	5	5	3	10	242	2nd
2011	2011 GP2 Series	Arden International	18	0	0	0	0	0	28th
	2011 GP2 Asia Series	Arden International	4	0	0	0	0	0	19th
	2011 GP2 Final	Addax Team	2	0	0	0	1	9	4th
	2011 FIA Formula Two Championship	Motorsport Vision	2	0	0	0	0	0	NC
2012	2012 GP2 Series	iSport International	24	1	0	0	3	78	11th
2013	2013 GP2 Series	Carlin Motorsport	22	2	1	2	3	119	7th
rowspan=2 2014	2014 GP2 Series	DAMS	22	4  !3  !7  !12  !276  !style="background:#FFFFBF;" 1st  |-  !2014 FIA Formula One World Championship  !Force India (Test driver)  colspan="7"| —  |-  !2015  !2015 FIA Formula One World Championship  !Lotus F1 Team (Test driver)  colspan="7"| —  |-  !2016  !2016 FIA Formula One World Championship  !Renault Sport F1 Team  !21  !0  !0  !0  !0  !1  !18th  |-  !2017  !2017 FIA Formula One World Championship  !_same_  !16  !0  !0  !0  !0  !8  !17th

Complete Formula Palmer Audi results

(key) (Races shown in bold denote pole positions) (Races in italics represent fastest laps)

Year	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	DC	Points
2007	SIL 1 12	SIL 2 4	BRH 1 Ret	BRH 2 6	BRH 3 2	SNE 1 4	SNE 2 10	SNE 3 10	BRH 1 1	BRH 2 9	BRH 3 4	CAS 1 Ret	CAS 2 Ret	OUL 1 3	OUL 2 1						10th	187
2008	DON 1 5	DON 2 5	DON 3 4	BRH 1 4	BRH 1 3	SPA < br >1 < br >1	SPA < br >2 < br >2	SPA < br >3 < br >2	OUL < br >1 < br >3	OUL < br >2 < br >Ret	BRH < br >1 < br >2	BRH < br >2 < br >2	SNE < br >1 < br >2	SNE < br >2 < br >5	SNE < br >3 < br >3	BRH < br >1 < br >2	BRH < br >2 < br >4	BRH < br >3 < br >7	SIL < br >1 < br >3	SIL < br >2 < br >4	3rd	338
2009 Formula Palmer Audi season#2009													style= " background :#FFFFBF ;" | Silverstone Circuit#2009 Silverstone race#1 Template:Small :1	style= " background :#DFFFDF ;" | Silverstone Circuit#2009 Silverstone race#2 Template:Small :18	style= " background :#DFFFDF ;" | Silverstone Circuit#2009 Silverstone race#3 Template:Small :18	style= " background :#DFFFDF ;" | Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit#2009 Snetterton race#1 Template:Small :6	style= " background :#FFDF9F ;" | Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit#2009 Snetterton race#2 Template:Small :3	style= " background :#EFCFFF ;" | Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit#2009 Snetterton race#3 Template:Small :Ret	16th	70

Full FIA Formula Two Championship Results

(key) (Entries in bold denote pole positions) (Entries in italics signify fastest laps)

Season	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final Position	Total Points
2009	VAL 1 21st	VAL 2 Retired	BRN 1 10th	BRN 2 14th	SPA 1 16th	SPA 2 Retired	BRH 1 12th	BRH 2 16th	DON 1 16th	DON 2 12th	OSC 1 15th	OSC 2 19th	IMO 1 12th	IMO 2 6th	CAT 1 13th	CAT 2 11th			21st	3

Season	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
2010	SIL 1 1st	SIL < br > 2 < br > 2nd	MAR < br > 1 < br > Retired	MAR < br > 2 < br > 5th	MNZ < br > 1 < br > 1st	MNZ < br > 2 < br > 1st

Comprehensive GP2 Series Results

(key) (Pole positions are shown in bold; fastest laps appear in italics)

...

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	Final Standing	Points Total
2011	Arden International	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | IST < br /> FEA < br /> 17th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | IST < br /> SPR < br /> 9th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | CAT < br /> FEA < br /> 18th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | CAT < br /> SPR < br /> 17th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | MON < br /> FEA < br /> NC	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | MON < br /> SPR < br /> 11th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | VAL < br /> FEA < br /> 9th	style="background:#EFCFFF;" | VAL < br /> SPR < br /> Retired	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | SIL < br /> FEA < br /> 20th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | SIL < br /> SPR < br /> 16th	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | NÜR < br /> FEA < br /> 19th	style="background:#EFCFFF;" | NÜR < br /> SPR < br /> Retired	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | HUN < br /> FEA < br /> 22nd	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | HUN < br /> SPR < br /> 18th	style="background:#EFCFFF;" | SPA < br /> FEA < br /> Retired	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | SPA < br /> SPR < br /> 14th	style="background:#EFCFFF;" | MNZ < br /> FEA < br /> Retired	style="background:#CFCFFF;" | MNZ < br /> SPR < br /> 19th	colspan=6 |	!28th	!0
2012 GP2 Series	iSport International	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Sepang GP2 Series round  SEP  FEA Template:Small 17th	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Sepang GP2 Series round  SEP  SPR Template:Small 12th	style = " background: #ffffff; "	2012 Bahrain First GP2 Series Round BHR1 FEA Template:Small DNS	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Bahrain First GP2 Series Round BHR1 SPR Template:Small 7th	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Bahrain Second GP2 Series Round BHR2 FEA Template:Small 24th	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Bahrain Second GP2 Series Round BHR2 SPR Template:Small 22nd	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Catalunya GP2 Series Round CAT FEA Template:Small 9th	style = " background: #ffffff; "	2012 Catalunya GP2 Series Round CAT SPR Template:Small DNS	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Monaco GP2 Series Round MON FEA Template:Small 6th	style = " background: #FFFFBF; "	2012 Monaco GP2 Series Round MON SPR Template:Small 1st	style = " background: #EFCFFF; "	2012 Valencia GP2 Series Round VAL FEA Template:Small Retired	style = " background: #EFCFFF; "	2012 Valencia GP2 Series Round VAL SPR Template:Small Retired	style = " background: #FFDF9F; "	2012 Silverstone GP2 Series Round SIL FEA Template:Small 3rd	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Silverstone GP2 Series Round SIL SPR Template:Small 5th	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Hockenheimring GP2 Series Round HOC FEA Template:Small 18th	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Hockenheimring GP2 Series Round HOC SPR Template:Small 18th	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Hungaroring GP2 Series Round HUN FEA Template:Small 6th	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Hungaroring GP2 Series Round HUN SPR Template:Small 5th	style = " background: #EFCFFF; "	2012 Spa-Francorchamps GP2 Series Round SPA FEA Template:Small Retired	style = " background: #cfcfff; "	2012 Spa-Francorchamps GP2 Series Round SPA SPR Template:Small 10th	style = " background: #DFFFDF; "	2012 Monza GP2 Series Round MNZ FEA Template:Small 7th	style = " background: #FFDF9F; "	20112 Monza GP22SeriesRoundMNZSPR3rd	!11th	!78

Full GP2 Asia Series standings

(key) (Races shown in bold denote pole positions) (Races in italics represent fastest lap)

Year	Team	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Final Position	Total Points
2011	Arden International	YMC FEA 14	YMC SPR 10	IMO FEA 19	IMO SPR Ret	19th place	0

Full GP2 Final standings

(key) (Races in bold signify pole position) (Races in italics denote fastest lap)

Year	Team	Race 1	Race 2	Overall Position	Points Accumulated
2011	Barwa Addax Team	YMC FEA 3rd	YMC SPR 4th	4th overall	9 points

Complete Formula One results

(key) (Pole positions are indicated by bold text; fastest laps are shown in italics)

Year	Team	Chassis Model	Engine Manufacturer	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Race 6	Race 7	Race 8	Race 9	Race 10	Race 11	Race 12	Race 13	Race 14	Race 15	Race 16	Race 17	Race 18	Race 19	Race 20	Race 21	World Championship Position	Points Scored
Template:F1	Lotus F1 Team	Lotus E23 Hybrid	Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains PU106B Hybrid 1.6L V6 Turbocharged engine	AUS	MAL	CHN Test Driver	BHR Test Driver	ESP Test Driver	MON	CAN	AUT Test Driver	GBR Test Driver	HUN Test Driver	BEL Test Driver	ITA Test Driver	SIN	JPN Test Driver	RUS Test Driver	USA Test Driver