Jolyon Palmer is a Renault Sport Formula 1 race driver for 2016 and was Third and Reserve Driver for Lotus F1 Team in the 2015 season. The 2014 GP2 Champion took part in the majority of Free Practice One sessions at Grands Prix weekends throughout 2015, before being promoted to a race seat for the 2016 season.

Jolyon attended all F1 events in 2015, where he worked with the team in his role as Third Driver, and contributed to the car's testing and development. 

Driving for French team DAMS, Palmer rewrote the GP2 record books in 2014, scoring the most points ever in a season (256) and for the most consecutive points finishes (19), to become the first Briton since Lewis Hamilton in 2006 to win the F1 feeder series.  He qualified on the front row seven times, won four races (at Bahrain, Monaco, Monza and Sochi) and secured an additional eight podium placings to win the championship with three races to spare.

Palmer started his season with five consecutive podium finishes, including two wins, demonstrating overtaking abilities which would become the hallmark of his impressive season. Jolyon's race craft was most evident at Monza, when a technicality forced him to start at the back of the grid, and he fought back from 26th to finish eighth. This secured him reverse grid pole for the Sprint Race, which he won to extend his championship lead.

Prior to GP2, Jolyon enjoyed an outstanding season in the 2010 FIA Formula 2 Championship where he finished runner-up after dominating the first half of the campaign. He pushed eventual champion Dean Stoneman all the way until the final round of the season, scoring five wins, 10 podiums and five pole positions.