Jonathan Palmer describes Kevin Magnussen as “an excellent benchmark” for his son Jolyon, with both drivers forming Renault’s line-up on its return to Formula One.
Having been promoted to a full-time role after serving as Lotus' 2015 reserve driver, Palmer Jnr was initially supposed to partner Pastor Maldonado but the Venezuelan was replaced by Magnussen when his oil sponsorship dried up.
Asked by F1i whether having a new highly-rated team-mate and losing Pastor’s five-year F1 experience had affected Jolyon’s preparations, Palmer Snr replied:
“I don’t think so really. Obviously, Kevin has done a year with McLaren, so he’s done a year of Formula One with a top team. And that experience will be very valuable, there is no doubt about it. And clearly Kevin is a very quick driver, so Jolyon has an excellent benchmark there.
“Being with the team all last year, even though it had its challenges, was a great preparation for [Jolyon]. He knows many and most of the people in the team. He is very comfortable in the team, the team of Enstone. The engineers are stable. I think he’ll evolve into the racing pretty well.
“It would have been great to have the benefit of Pastor’s experience, but Jolyon sees the situation as a positive overall and he is looking forward to working with Kevin.”
Maldonado’s demise highlighted Renault’s winter of uncertainty, with company CEO Carlos Ghosn refusing to confirm the manufacturer’s 2016 line-up after completing the takeover of Lotus last December.
Palmer Snr insists his son’s contract, which had been made official in October, was never under threat.
“I absolutely had no worries at all. Mr. Ghosn clearly wanted to try retaining any further information until the announcement, which is quite understandable.
“He was asked about whether a French driver was going to be involved and that was the real issue. When he said ‘you’ll have to wait for the announcement of the drivers’ I’m sure he was thinking mainly about whether there could be a French third driver. And that has been a case, and that was not done until now. I think some of the media misinterpreted it as doubting the existing drivers.
“But then on the other hand, maybe Mr. Ghosn knew more about the situation with Pastor Maldonado’s contract. We were never in any doubt. Our contract was finalised in conjunction with Renault, so there was no question about Jolyon driving here this year.”
Jonathan Palmer took 83 F1 starts from 1983-1989, with spells at Williams, RAM, Zakspeed, and Tyrrell. His best result was a fourth-place finish at the 1987 Australian Grand Prix in Adelaide.
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