Jolyon Palmer will be dropped by Renault after the Japanese Grand Prix, the French team said after qualifying at Suzuka. Renault had already confirmed Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz would replace the British driver next season but on Saturday revealed that Japan would be Palmer’s last race with them. Sainz will take over at the next round in the United States.
Having won the GP2 series in 2014 with the DAMS team, Palmer joined what was then Lotus F1 in 2015 as a test driver. Renault took over the team as a full manufacturer entrant the next season and Palmer was promoted to a race seat, alongside Kevin Magnussen. In an underperforming car, he showed promise and scored a point for the team in Malaysia.
This season, however, he has struggled to match the performances of his team-mate Nico Hülkenberg. He has suffered from considerable technical difficulties and bad luck, but, equally, has been consistently outperformed by the German, who won Le Mans 2015.
The Renault managing director, Cyril Abiteboul, warned in June that Palmer had to deliver, but although the Briton scored a career-best sixth in Singapore, the team – who are in a tight midfield battle with Haas and Toro Rosso – have opted to bring Sainz in early because he has proved impressively strong in scoring points this season. In seventh place, Renault trail Toro Rosso by 10 points and lead Haas by only five. With the major financial gains from a higher finish in the constructors’ championship on offer, the team have opted to make the switch in the expectation that Sainz will deliver more consistently.
“It’s been an extremely challenging season and I’ve been through a lot in the last three years but it’s been a tremendous journey with the team,” said Palmer. “My immediate focus is on achieving the best possible result in the Japanese GP, and then I can assess my options for the future.”
Abiteboul said: “I would like to thank Jolyon for his commitment to the team and his professionalism. Since Renault’s return to Formula One, Jolyon has been highly dedicated in an evolving environment. He has shown great personal qualities and we wish him all the best in his future career.”
Toro Rosso have confirmed Daniil Kvyat will return to the team to replace Sainz. He had been dropped in favour of the young French driver Pierre Gasly for Malaysia and Japan. However, the team will now retain Gasly and recall Kvyat but have not specified what their lineup will be after the US race.
Sainz was eager to begin working with Renault, a team that have ambitions to be challenging for the world championship within three years. “Competing in these last four races with Renault gives me a good opportunity to get to know the team and the car earlier than expected. I am looking forward to start working with them,” he said.
