British driver Jolyon Palmer says he can't wait to start his debut GP2 season with less than a week to go before the opening rounds at Turkey's Istanbul Speed Park on 6-8 May.

The 20-year-old will shortly fly out from his home in West Sussex to the 5.338km Turkish circuit to join the 25 other drivers competing in the renowned Formula 1 feeder series.

Jolyon, who is the son of former Formula 1 driver Jonathan, steps up to the series after a successful season in the FIA Formula Two Championship last year in which he narrowly missed out on the title spot at the final round, finishing second overall.

Racing with Arden Motorsport, alongside team-mate Czech driver Josef Kral, Jolyon has spent much of this year getting to grips with the state of the art 612bhp GP2 car and despite being a newcomer, has already made good progress in pre-season testing.

Speaking ahead of the opening 2011 GP2 rounds Jolyon said: "I'm looking forward to getting the season underway although I will be starting on a track I've never raced at before unlike a lot of the drivers in the field, so it will be crucial to maximise my track time in the practice session beforehand.

"I've done a lot of preparation and my confidence in the car is growing but it will be a case of trying to carry all of this into the race. I don't have any set goals for my first season but I'd like to be getting regular points finishes and possibly podiums later in the season. It's a very competitive championship though so it will be difficult for me."

The seventh GP2 series begins in Turkey on 6-8 May running as a support race to Formula 1 and features some of the best young drivers from around the world.