Jolyon Palmer Tag

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Motorsports Tribune reviews the top 10 Formula 1 drivers of 2017. Our list begins with 10th place finisher Nico Hulkenberg. Nico Hulkenberg, No. 27 Renault Sport Formula 1 Team 2017: 10th in the championship, 43 points Wins: 0, Podiums: 0, Top 5: 0, Top 10: 8, Poles: 0, Laps Led: 0, Fastest Laps: 0 Best Finish: 6th – Four times (Spain, Great Britain, Belgium, Abu Dhabi) Nico Hulkenberg holds the unfortunate record of having the most Formula 1 race finishes without a podium, 135 Grands Prix. TheRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Renault and Toro Rosso have agreed that Carlos Sainz Jr. will move to the French team after the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend. This had been the original aim of the deal between Red Bull and Renault when it was agreed that Toro Rosso would loan Sainz to the French outfit. However, negotiations between Renault and Jolyon Palmer broke down and the British driver remained alongside Nico Hukenberg. The negotiations later resumed and Palmer has announced that tomorrow will be his last race with the team,Read More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor After his first F1 test in six years, Robert Kubica has announced that his goal is to return to Formula 1. In an interview with Sky Sports the 32 year old Polish driver spoke of his satisfaction in being able to drive a Formula One car again and declared that he wants to make a full time return to the series. “For sure it’s kind of a new start for me. I don’t know what it will bring, but definitely it’s a nice feeling to know I can drive anRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor With the rumors swirling around McLaren-Honda like vultures, Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg has gone on record saying he would welcome Fernando Alonso back to Renault should the two-time World Champ leave McLaren at season’s end. Speaking to Speed Week ahead of this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, the German driver was very excited at the possibility of Alonso considering a Renault return. “I think it would be great,” said Hulkenberg. “It would be great not only for the whole team, but for me as well to compete with one ofRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Jolyon Palmer has called out Renault after a rough Saturday came to a halt after a last place result in qualifying for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. The 26-year-old Brit took blame for his crash in second practice on Friday, which forced the team to rebuild the R.S.17. However, Palmer struggled with pace in FP3, ending the session 19th before the day worsened in qualifying. With a lap at 1 minute, 28.244 seconds, Palmer was well over a second off the next slowest car, which wasRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor 2017 may prove to be just the reset Renault has needed. One of F1’s four power unit suppliers, Renault is a full works team for only their second season back after it stayed away from the sport from 2011 to 2015. Crucially they have an all new car, as last year’s design was very much a warmed over Lotus. The new machine, the R.S.17 is one of the more attractive and purposeful looking cars on the grid. Piloted by veteran recruit Nico Hulkenberg and second yearRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Ferrari saved their best for the last day of preseason testing at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as Kimi Raikkonen blitzed the field en route to the fastest time of winter and the second fastest lap ever recorded at the track. His 1:18.634 very nearly reached the 1:18.243 Fernando Alonso set while testing slick tires on the Renault R28 in preparation for the 2009 season. Of far more importance to Ferrari, Raikkonen’s time is seven tenths of a second faster than Mercedes’ best lap and eight tenths better thanRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Just as many began to doubt Mercedes’ pace, the silver arrows struck back with Valtteri Bottas who set a scorching 1:19.310 lap of Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The new Mercedes man only used the super soft tires to set the best time of 2017 thus far, and looked very comfortable behind the wheel of the W08 where he stayed for 70 laps today. Williams man and yesterday’s pace setter Felipe Massa kept him honest with a strong 1:19.420 for the ultra soft shod FW40. Both of their timesRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Renault took to the track for its filming day at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya ahead of the preseason test set to take place next week. The French outfit revealed the R.S.17 on Tuesday with an aggressive yellow and black livery to balance the changes to a challenger they hope can be among the top five teams in Formula 1. Jolyon Palmer was given the honor of giving the R.S.17 its first laps at the Spanish circuit. The only footage came from the team via Twitter and canRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Renault Sport F1 Team became the third squad to reveal its 2017 Formula 1 car – the RS17. The launch came at an event in London with the team also officially introducing race drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Jolyon Palmer, and test driver Sergei Sorotkin. Having finished ninth in the constructors’ standings last season, Renault Sport president Jerome Stoll set the target for fifth place for the upcoming season. “The RS17 is the first car which Enstone and Viry (Renault’s UK and French F1 bases) have beenRead More