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Jolyon Palmer is an ex-Formula 1 driver, racing for the Renault Sport team in 2016 and 2017.
Having competed in other racing competitions such as the GP2, Jolyon then competed in over 35 Grands Prix worldwide, competing against some of the biggest names such as Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.
While he may have left the driver’s seat in 2017, Jolyon hasn’t moved away from the sport, now working as a Formula 1 commentator for the BBC and F1TV.
He is now a popular keynote speaker in the world of sporting events.
With former Formula 1 driver Jonathan Palmer for a dad, racing was always in Jolyon’s blood. In fact, Jonathan founded a class of racing in 1998 known as the Formula Palmer Audi (FPA). It was here that Jolyon got his first taste of competitive Formula driving. Between 2007 and 2008, Jolyon achieved 18 podium finishes and three wins. He then moved on to the FIA Formula Two Championship, achieving 10 podium finishes and five wins in the next two years.
Jolyon then made his GP2 series debut in 2011, driving for the Arden International team. Over the next three years, he would go on to achieve eight podium finishes, plus another four wins, and a then-series record of 256 points.
He made the leap into Formula 1 driving in 2015, signing on as a test driver for the Lotus F1 team, before making his debut on a Grand Prix weekend in China. In 2016, he was promoted to a full race driver for the Renault Sport team. He would go on to race at the Australian, Russian, Singapore, German, Malaysian, Belgian, Italian, Hungarian, and Spanish Grands Prix, as well as in Monaco, Azerbaijan, Austria, and England. He would go on to leave Renault in 2017 and step away from active racing.
Since quitting racing, Jolyon Palmer has gone on to commentate on the Formula 1 World Championships on BBC Radio 5 and for the official F1TV channel and app. His expertise has earned him considerable praise, thanks to his natural delivery and strong opinions, as well as his unique insight into Formula 1. He has also written for the BBC website’s Grand Prix column, providing a GP2 diary for Sky Sports F1, and contributes to www.formula1.com.
Throughout his racing career, Jolyon Palmer was honoured with several awards, including the Guild of Motoring Writers Driver of the Year (2014) and the British Racing Drivers’ Club’s Fairfield Trophy (2014), and was nominated for the Autosport Awards British Competition Driver of the Year in 2014, losing out to fellow British racer Lewis Hamilton.
– Formula 1
– Sport
– Racing
– TV/Radio Presenting
Jolyon’s unique position a Formula 1 driver, writer, and sporting expert make him a popular guest speaker at corporate events.