2014 GP2 Series champion Jolyon Palmer will move from the third driver role to the race seat for the Lotus F1 Team for the 2016 Formula 1 season.
The twenty-four-year-old British driver will replace the Haas-bound Romain Grosjean in the team alongside Pastor Maldonado.
“We are very pleased to announce that exciting British racing talent Jolyon Palmer is promoted to a race seat with the team for next season,” said Chairman and Team Principal Gerard Lopez.
“We’ve seen Jolyon’s hard work and talent this season in the way he’s approached his third driver role and he is a really popular choice for the team.
“As well as having a great future ahead of him behind the wheel, Jolyon is an intelligent and highly marketable asset to the team. He deserves this opportunity, and everyone at Enstone is excited to see what he can achieve next year.”
Palmer, who has run in eleven free practice sessions so far during 2015, ironically all in place of the driver he will replace in the team for next season Grosjean, is delighted to have secured a full-time drive with the team, and follows in the footsteps of his father Jonathan Palmer who raced for Williams, RAM, Zakspeed and Tyrrell in a seven-year F1 career.
“I’m obviously delighted that I’ll be racing in Formula 1 next year,” revealed Palmer. “Lotus F1 Team gave me a tremendous opportunity this season and I thank them for assisting my development to a level where they have put their trust in me for a crucial season in their evolution.
“I’ve enjoyed and learnt a lot from my year as Third and Reserve driver so I’m looking forward to putting this into practice as a race driver in 2016. I can’t wait for next season to get underway!”
