Renault driver Jolyon Palmer delivered a classy and composed drive in the recent Singapore Grand Prix and as a result he secured a career best sixth place finish, despite just hearing the news that he had lost his drive to Carlos Sainz jnr in 2018.
Now it's time to head to the Sepang International Circuit for the next round of the 2017 Formula One World Championship, a circuit which gave him his maiden Formula One points finish last season.
What are your thoughts on Sepang?
It's always nice and warm there and I tend to do well in these humid races; Malaysia last year, Singapore this year so I'm looking forward to it. It's a cool track with a good atmosphere to match. It's a flowing circuit with some long straights, fast corners and hard braking zones. We have a bit of confidence going there. The car keeps getting better, I'm certainly improving too so we'll aim to get another good result.
Is it a feeling of relief to get the first points of the season?
Finally we had a smooth race which is ironic given what was going on with the safety cars and the tricky weather conditions. We made a good start, and the move on Bottas was fun; a lot happened in the two hours. It feels like a weight off the shoulders to get some points, I hope to push on now and get some more. I know I can do it.
What's your record in Malaysia like?
I raced in Sepang twice when I was in GP2 but for various reasons at the time I didn't have any memorable finishes, although one year I came up to ninth from the back of the grid. Last year I got my first Formula 1 point; there are plenty of overtaking opportunities on the track so I'll be looking to make the most of it and add some more points.
Have you seen the sights of Malaysia?
I've seen a little bit of it but we don't always have time to see the places we visit because we have busy schedules. Kuala Lumpur is a really cool city to explore and downtown you can visit the very modern areas with the big famous towers and then you have the more traditional areas and the markets. The city's got a great vibe.
