Jolyon Palmer believes the opening day of practice for the Malaysian Grand Prix was pretty straightforward.
The Renault Sport F1 driver finished Free Practice 1 in nineteenth, ahead of the Manor Racing of Esteban Ocon. Palmer had a good session compared to team-mate Kevin Magnussen who’s RS16 burst into flames just outside their garage.
It was confirmed the issue was caused by a fuel leak from a breather, and there was concern that Palmer might experience the same problem but this was not the case and he was able to finish the session with a fastest lap of 1:39.148. In Free Practice 2, Palmer performed a lot stronger for Renault as he finished in twelfth. He finished the day with a fastest lap time of 1:36.940, an improvement of 2.208 seconds compared to his morning time.
Palmer believes the Enstone-based outfit made decent progress for the afternoon session and hopes they are well-placed for further improvement on Saturday for Free Practice 3 and Qualifying.
“That was a pretty straightforward over my side of the garage,” said Palmer. “I think all the action was on Kev’s side today.
“We did have a few moments pushing the limits as we learnt the new track surface in the morning but the track’s still very rewarding to drive. We made decent progress for the afternoon session and should be well-placed for further improvement tomorrow.”
