Jolyon Palmer will arrive at the Circuit de Catalunya next weekend at the head of the GP2 Series standings after a win and a podium in the opening event of the year in Bahrain last month. The DAMS driver currently has a ten-point lead in the championship ahead of the Colombian Julian Leal of Carlin.
The 23-year-old Brit also managed to take his second career GP2 pole position in Sakhir, although a bad start saw him only finish third behind eventual winner Stoffel Vandoorne of ART Grand Prix and Leal.
He made up for his poor start on the Saturday by making a terrific sprint race start on the Sunday to leap from sixth on the grid to second by the first corner, and then he overtook Swiss Rapax driver Simon Trummer on the run down to the first corner on lap two to take the lead, a lead he would maintain until the chequered flag.
“After over a month off I’m itching to get back racing in Barcelona and we’ve been working hard since Bahrain to make sure we can be fighting at the front again,” said Palmer. “Qualifying will be crucial as overtaking is quite difficult at Barcelona so we need to make sure we are up to speed quickly on Friday.”