ANATOMY OF AN F1 DRIVER’S REINVENTION
WHEN JOLYON PALMER lost his Renault drive after the 2017 Japanese Grand Prix and was replaced by Carlos Sainz Jr, he kept a deliberately low profile. “It was not a pleasant place to be for me and I didn’t have any intention of going back,” he says. “When I got home I quietly accepted what happened. “I wasn’t fussed about watching the races, and for somebody who has grown up watching every Formula 1 race since I was a kid, it was a little strange to have it a little soured.” One year later from that low point, Palmer is an F1 2018 hit. But in a very different way.
THE UNPLANNED MOVE
Palmer planted the seeds of an alternative career in 2015. When he was “doing GP2 commentary, I would get called up to do some F1 practices on Sky or a little bit of 5 Live”. He was expecting to spend ’18 away from racing altogether, but doors opened.
“I wasn’t seeking it out,” he says. “I got a call from the BBC over the winter to come and do it. It stacked up with what I wanted to do, so I thought, ‘Why not?’”
THE INSTANT HIT
Palmer has nailed the discipline. His style oozes confidence because he’s opinionated and extremely knowledgeable, but he’s worked out where to draw the line. It makes for a classy broadcast.
“We’re generally broader with explaining things, rather than the nitty-gritty,” he notes. “There are times when you can, it’s just feeling the session and what’s going on in terms of the depth of information.
“Before the season the BBC explained how they wanted it to work. I could go into more detail but it’s not great for the listener.”
THE SHARPSHOOTING
“I just call things as I see it,” says Palmer. “I’ve always been quite opinionated. That came back to bite me in the arse with some juicy headlines sometimes while driving.
“Coming back, you can see how much the drivers have to rein stuff in with interviews. It can stifle personalities.
You have to be very careful with what you say – there’s a corporate line and it’s difficult to be outspoken.
“I enjoy saying what I think. My role with the BBC is a nice way to do that.”
THE PRAISE
If you’ve listened to 5 Live, via radio or the F1 App, you’ll know why Palmer has been so widely praised in his new role. But, quite pleasantly, he lacks an ego, so plays down the suggestion that he is one of the off-track stars of 2018.
“I think it’s gone well but mainly because the team I’m working with has been great,” he says. “I feel like I can just be quite natural when I talk.
“I’m just doing it in the moment and having fun with what I’m doing, hopefully helping the audience to understand more what’s going on in a reasonably exciting way.”
THE CLOSURE
It is never pleasent to see how F1 can chew a driver up and spit them out. So it is both important and something to be cheered that Palmer has found a way to be happy once again in the same paddock that put the weight of the world on his shoulders a year ago.
“I’ve got this role, I’m enjoying what I’m doing and I’m back in the paddock from a different perspective. I can see it from the outside and it’s a much nicer place to be.
“I’m really not fussed about coming back [to racing]. You never know, if there’s a great offer to come back and do something then I would never say never. But right now, as I sit here, it’s not at all on my mind to come back.”