F1 End of Season Report: Rate the Grid - Jolyon Palmer

[Jolero02]

Probably one of the drivers with the worst luck on the grid- he had a barrage of reliability problems and it annoyed me how Renault (team) tried to cover this with his subsequent poor performances. Every time he had a good race/quali he would have a reliability problem. Nonetheless, he was clearly outperformed by Hulkenburg( who I feel did outperform the car) and did not make the most of his opportunity to impress. I don't feel he was particually reckless or inconsistent, he just is not a top level fast driver.

 

[Deleted member 205301]

Renault said it for all...
Well, off course the guy seems to be a nice one, but honestly we are all a bit embarased for him.
Gave him a 4/10 (under the average), he tried, he failed, he felt : tough rule at this level of competition.
I will add that i love racing, and for me "not fast enough" doesn't mean "not fast at all", so even palmer is still a great driver (but apparently not made for F1)
@++

 

[apex11]

I don't think you can rate someone 4/10 then go onto tell people that you don't respect it if they rate him 3/10....
I very much doubt Palmer gives a stuff anyway regards this poll. I imagine he's hurting a bit but he'll bounce back somewhere and at least he can say he drove an F1 car in actual races and like i say in the Merc he would of been at the front and maybe even won one, if Bottas can anyone can in a Merc....

 

[jpalesi]

He was on average 0.7s slower than Hulkenberg this season. Was it luck that made him almost one second slower ?

 

[apex11]

He was on average 0.7s slower than Hulkenberg this season. Was it luck that made him almost one second slower ?

Hulk is better than him, not a surprise, Hulk is IMO better than Bottas, Alonso is better than Hulk.... yet Palmer and Alonso clashed a few times on track.... The Renault was better than the McLaren.

 

[davifernandeslima]

Renault said it for all...
Well, off course the guy seems to be a nice one, off course we are all a bit embarased for him, and off course I'm not a kid judging people and saying "this one is a big ****, this other does not deseve to stay alive..blablabla", I'm not that guy.
Gave him a 4/10 (under the average), he tried, he failed, he felt : tough rule at this level of competition.
@++
...
PS : well.... I have to say it (cannot keep it to myself) :
I really have no respect for people rating a F1 driver under 3/10 even if he was not "fast enough"

c'mon guys, don't act like a frustrated kid, try to be honest, be respectfull : "not fast enough" doesn't mean "not fast at all"

@++

"give it a 3! you don't deserve respect scum. Give it a 4! noooow you do....sit in the headtable sir "' aw, c'mon man, give it a break. is this site rating system, 0 to 10, as normal as walking foward. And it is also perfectly normal to have people below the requirements of this sport in every year since existed.... there's people below 4 in 2017 also, sr. cheers

ps.: your ps was ridiculous.

 

[Neilski]

Woohoo, it's not as if we're ranking them on a scale where 1 is someone who is 30 seconds off the pace on a 60 second kart track lap

I choose to interpret the scale such that 10 is a near-perfect F1 driver and 1 means somebody who is a bloody brilliant driver in slower cars (and would beat just about anybody who contributes to this forum! ) and got into F1 on the back of that - maybe with a bit of cash thrown in - but simply doesn't cut the mustard in F1 and thus doesn't belong in an F1 car...

 

[snyperal]

I can't quite get my head around his name. One of those that you read and in your mind have it one way but everyone else pronounces it differently. For me, it's the old Dolly Parton classic, Jolene.

I think he was pretty poor as a racing driver, although he shined when he knew it was coming to an end.

 

[Ploddy]

I said I rate him higher than Ericcson, so he gets a 2.

It breaks my heart to say that you'd actually have to rate Ericcson higher, because at least he still has a seat...

 

[Nick Gregory]

It breaks my heart to say that you'd actually have to rate Ericcson higher, because at least he still has a seat...

No. I rate Palmer higher.

 

[Deleted member 205301]

....

You're welcome for a cofee

c'mon man, give it a break.

yeah, you're right ...was a bit excited yesterday

I edited my post, took a breath, and admit that this ranking is just an occasion to talk and share something we all loves : racing (and simracing), nothing more.
Glad that some people could open my mind sometimes
@++

 

[apex11]

Woohoo, it's not as if we're ranking them on a scale where 1 is someone who is 30 seconds off the pace on a 60 second kart track lap

I choose to interpret the scale such that 10 is a near-perfect F1 driver and 1 means somebody who is a bloody brilliant driver in slower cars (and would beat just about anybody who contributes to this forum! ) and got into F1 on the back of that - maybe with a bit of cash thrown in - but simply doesn't cut the mustard in F1 and thus doesn't belong in an F1 car...

But that is going along with the mythology that F1 cars are impossible to drive to anyone but alien mortals...
Palmer wasn't the best in F1 he's not the 20th best in the world. Its not like F1 has 22 of the best drivers in the world, its a mythology.
F1 cars are the most advanced race cars in the world they are not engineered to be impossible to drive, like GT3 cars its actually the reverse........
But if you want to keep thinking they way you think go for it.

 

[Neilski]

But that is going along with the mythology that F1 cars are impossible to drive to anyone but alien mortals...
Palmer wasn't the best in F1 he's not the 20th best in the world. Its not like F1 has 22 of the best drivers in the world, its a mythology.
F1 cars are the most advanced race cars in the world they are not engineered to be impossible to drive, like GT3 cars its actually the reverse........
But if you want to keep thinking they way you think go for it.

Huh?? You seem to think that I think a bunch of things that I didn't even say. I don't think F1 drivers are superhuman. But anyone who made it to F1 - ever - will still be quicker than just about anyone who posts here. Now and then proper aliens do join in of course (I've driven against a few of them in sim racing) but they are the exception.

 

[apex11]

Huh?? You seem to think that I think a bunch of things that I didn't even say. I don't think F1 drivers are superhuman. But anyone who made it to F1 - ever - will still be quicker than just about anyone who posts here. Now and then proper aliens do join in of course (I've driven against a few of them in sim racing) but they are the exception.

Someone like Palmer was in F1 and racing due to his father, everything was aligned for him to succeed, money, contacts, training, practice.
Of course i would expect off the back of that for a person to gain some skills.
I doubt many of us on here got that amazing chance like Palmer did...
But the fact is, his Dad is rich his Dad owns a bunch of race tracks and his Dad knows a lot of people in the industry......
Off the back of all of that, Palmer was / is a failure.
Now why did he fail? The car, yes...for sure, but like i said already a Merc would of got him further up possibly a few 2nds but Palmer isn't even as good as Bottas. So he still would of been considered a failure by Mercedes standards and that Merc should either win or be 2nd in their eyes.

So yes, I i give the guy 3 out of 10 its because he had so much stacked in his favour and he failed... he simply wasn't good enough compared to others. There are heaps of racers out there that can drive an F1 car to its limits and get to the cars maximum performance or over it...Palmer wasn't one of them...so a waste of an F1 seat the whole time he was there...

 

[Neilski]

I also gave him a 3.
But just to get an F1 car around a track within a second of Hulkenberg, the guy has to be a serious driver and athlete.

 

[apex11]

I also gave him a 3.
But just to get an F1 car around a track within a second of Hulkenberg, the guy has to be a serious driver and athlete.

Fair enough, but that could only ever impress his mates down the pub or his Grandkids in years to come.
But mythology aside....he had a very gilded and lucky upbringing and a Dad willing to give him everything he needed to succeed....and sadly he didn't.
You need to look at these drivers like Stroll and see just what it is they are gifted to get to where they are and the fact Stroll's Daddy could pay millions for the Williams F1 sim which Stroll could use whenever he wanted, the use also of a 2015 Williams and 10 tech staff and engineers to go practice on tracks..all of that before he sat in an F1 car.....

Also take note of 'normal' people who have driven F1 cars...they are the best car you would ever drive and they are so advanced and grip so much the only real issue is making sure you are fast enough to make the most of the stupid amount of aero....
The Renault is still an amazing race car...its just not the Mercedes....

great video, bloke is a rich Daddies boy (of course) but he seems a nice guy and about as down to earth as he could be considering..
skip to 7.30 if you just want the F1 laps..

 

[snyperal]

As a past f1 driver I'm sure he'll have a healthy career in gt cars, maybe presenting or maybe another involvement in f1

 

[apex11]

As a past f1 driver I'm sure he'll have a healthy career in gt cars, maybe presenting or maybe another involvement in f1

Formula E, GT3 ('pro' driver partner to the gentleman drivers those cars are designed for), personally i think he'd be better suited to a UK GT3 championship as a 'pro' driver partner to the gentlemen..

 

[Neilski]

the only real issue is making sure you are fast enough to make the most of the stupid amount of aero

Gosh. We have very different views of it. Normal drivers might get around a lap, sure. They would not be able to keep the car near the limit and catch it each time they exceed that limit. Being near the limit or "normal driver" distance from the limit would in my view mean several seconds per lap. But maybe we'll have to agree to differ

 

[Neilski]

great video

Just watched it - it is a great video and he's such a lucky bastid for getting that chance!
Did he only get one lap on track though? Bit of a shame if so. (He was of course also in total Sunday-driver mode, as would we all be on our first lap, even ignoring the g-forces.)