It would appear that Jolyon Palmer is in the chopping block as Renault, as the team warns that he needs to start scoring points consistently. This warning comes after seven rounds in 2017 without a point for the Brit.
With a whole season under his belt and part of a season already underway, the Brit only has a single career point to his name. Both seasons he raced with Renault, but he quickly been labelled one of the worst drivers on the current grid.
The 2016 season was Renault’s first after returning to Formula One, so it’s understandable that the performance wasn’t quite there while the team came to grips with the new technology. Even still, Palmer’s teammate Kevin Magnussen scored seven points that year. So far this season, Nico Hülkenberg has scored 18 points alongside Palmer, while the Brit has scored none.
This season, the team has set the goal of passing Williams for sixth in the World Constructors’ Championship before summer break. With only four points separating the two teams, this goal is 100% doable with the required support and performance from Palmer.
Continued failure to perform could send Palmer out the door as early as August, but no one will say who could replace Palmer in his seat. The speculated choice would be Robert Kubica, who has been looking for an open-wheel racing return over the past few months.
Kubica previously raced with Renault in 2010 and was lined up to also drive the car in 2011. However, a serious rally crash left him sidelined and out of Formula One. Renault recently loaned him a 2011 Lotus during a private test session, which showed that the pace is there to make Kubica’s Formula One return a possibility.
