F1's Palmer '˜frustrated' with missing out on points again

Jolyon Palmer narrowly missed out on finishing in the points for the second consecutive race as he came home 11th in the Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Jolyon Palmer (GBR) Renault Sport F1 Team RS16.
Canadian Grand Prix, Sunday 12th June 2016. Montreal, Canada. SUS-170902-145837002Jolyon Palmer (GBR) Renault Sport F1 Team RS16.
Canadian Grand Prix, Sunday 12th June 2016. Montreal, Canada. SUS-170902-145837002
Jolyon Palmer (GBR) Renault Sport F1 Team RS16. Canadian Grand Prix, Sunday 12th June 2016. Montreal, Canada. SUS-170902-145837002

The Southwater driver drove in determined fashion to finish just one second shy of the points - equalling his season-best finish which he achieved in Monaco two weeks previous.

It means the Renault Sport Formula One Team driver, who started in 15th place on the grid, is yet to score this season and has achieved just one point in his F1 career to date.

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Meanwhile the team did score points with an eighth-position finish thanks to a strong and determined drive for Nico Hülkenberg at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Jolyon Palmer NNL-170329-122901002Jolyon Palmer NNL-170329-122901002
Jolyon Palmer NNL-170329-122901002

Ever hungry for more, Hülkenberg, who started in tenth, had been chasing down Kimi Räikkönen’s Ferrari for seventh position in the final laps and finished just 1.7 seconds adrift at the chequered flag.

Palmer said: “We finished in P11 again, two races in a row within touching distance of points. This is very frustrating, I lost a lot at the start with the mayhem, I lost positions then got stuck behind Grosjean for about 60 laps and couldn’t get close enough to attack him.

“I think the pace was a bit better and if I could have started a couple of places higher, we could have gotten into the points. The race was much better again, Q2 this weekend was positive, we just need to keep working hard.”

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Lewis Hamilton dominated the race as dramatic action behind allowed him to cut Sebastian Vettel’s title lead to 12 points as he came home fourth in his Ferrari.

The Mercedes driver controlled the race from start to finish, leading home team-mate Valtteri Bottas for his sixth win in ten races in Canada and in the process equalled Ayrton Senna’s mark of 65 pole positions.

Renault managing director Cyril Abiteboul said: “We had a good race in Montreal, the results were positive and we’re happy to be resuming our series of points finishes after a frustrating retirement in Monaco.

“The race allowed us to reduce the deficit between us and Williams, as we are aiming for sixth in the Constructors’ Championship before the mid-season break.

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“Nico had a good race, with a very strong pace, finishing on the lead lap. He was able to stay focused and remain unaffected by the mayhem and penalties around him.

“Jo had a similar strategy and he now has two P11 finishes in a row. The priority moving forward is for him to qualify higher in order to get a shot at winning some points and contribute to the team’s effort to gain ground in the Constructors’ Championship.”