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Jonathan Palmer

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Jonathan Palmer
Palmer in 2011
Born (1956-11-07) 7 November 1956 (age 67)
Lewisham, London, England
Formula One World Championship career
NationalityUnited Kingdom British
Active years19831989
TeamsWilliams, RAM, Zakspeed, Tyrrell
Entries88 (83 starts)
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points14
Pole positions0
Fastest laps1
First entry1983 European Grand Prix
Last entry1989 Australian Grand Prix

Jonathan Charles Palmer (born 7 November 1956)[1][2] is a British businessman and former Formula One racing driver. Before opting for a career in motor racing, Palmer trained as a physician at London's Guy's Hospital. He also worked as a junior physician at Cuckfield and Brighton hospitals.

He is currently the majority shareholder and Chief Executive of MotorSport Vision (MSV), a company that runs six UK motorsport circuits, the PalmerSport corporate driving event at Bedford Autodrome and several racing championships including British Superbikes and GB3.[3]

Prior to his business life, Palmer was active in Formula One between 1983 and 1989, and drove for Tyrrell, Williams, RAM, and Zakspeed. He won 14 Championship points from 83 starts. He also raced a Group C Porsche in sports car events between 1983 and 1990, winning the 1984 1000 km of Brands Hatch with co-driver Jan Lammers and taking second place at the 1985 24 Hours of Le Mans with co-drivers James Weaver and Richard Lloyd.

Palmer helped develop the McLaren F1 road car, and drove one to a new speed record for production cars.

Racing career

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Early career

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Following his education at Brighton College, Palmer raced an Austin Healey Sprite and a Marcos in club events while he was a medical student at Guy's Hospital.[4] He went on to work as a doctor at Cuckfield and Brighton hospitals, and opted for a professional driving career after he had participated in Formula Ford from 1978 to 1980. He won the British Formula 3 Championship in 1981,[5] and landed a Williams Formula One test drive in 1982. The following year he won the European Formula Two Championship, and the British Racing Drivers' Club awarded him their Gold Star.

Formula One

[edit]
Palmer driving for Zakspeed at the 1985 German Grand Prix

Palmer joined Williams as a test driver for the 1982 and 1983 seasons whilst racing in F2, and made his Formula One debut at Brands Hatch on 25 September 1983, driving a Williams in the European Grand Prix. This drive was a 'thank you' from Frank Williams and Patrick Head. He finished 13th out of 26 starters. Moving to the Skoal Bandit RAM March team in 1984, his six finishes yielded one 8th place, three 9th, one 10th, and one 13th. He joined Zakspeed in 1985, starting in eight races and retiring from all except the 1985 Detroit Grand Prix, where he finished 11th. Sixteen starts with the same team in 1986 resulted in eight retirements and a best finish of 8th in Detroit. At his home race at Brands Hatch that year, Palmer used his qualified general practitioner skills to assist the extrication of Ligier driver Jacques Laffite after Laffite suffered a career-ending crash on the opening lap.[6]

In 1987, Palmer talked with McLaren boss Ron Dennis about becoming the team's No. 2 driver to double World Champion Alain Prost. Dennis ultimately signed Stefan Johansson, and Palmer joined Tyrrell a week before the season's opening race in Brazil. Although outpaced by its turbocharged competitors, Tyrrell's naturally-aspirated Cosworth-powered car proved reliable, and it was nimble on tighter circuits. Palmer won championship points in three races, and it was in the Australian Grand Prix that he achieved his career-best fourth-place finish. He also won the Jim Clark Cup, a championship for drivers of normally aspirated cars. He stayed with Tyrrell for the next two seasons, during which his best results were two 5th-place finishes and three 6th. At the end of 1989 he signed as McLaren's test driver.

Sportscars

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Between 1983 and 1990 Palmer competed in the World Sportscar Championship at the wheel of a Group C Porsche. With co-driver Jan Lammers he won the 1984 1000 km of Brands Hatch. At Le Mans, his best result from five starts was second place in 1985, with co-drivers James Weaver and Richard Lloyd.

Post F1

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In 1991 Palmer came seventh in the British Touring Car Championship, driving a Prodrive BMW. Also that year he became a pit lane reporter for the BBC F1 commentary team. Following James Hunt's death from a heart attack after the 1993 Canadian Grand Prix, Palmer joined the BBC commentary box alongside Murray Walker. At the end of 1996 the BBC lost the rights to broadcast F1, and in 1997 Palmer joined the CBC for its annual commentary on the Grand Prix of Canada.

Road car development

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Palmer's work with McLaren included development of the McLaren F1 road car, and he drove one to a record-breaking 231 mph at the Nardo test track.[7]

Business career

[edit]

PalmerSport was founded in 1991 to run corporate hospitality motorsport events. This was initially run from the Bruntingthorpe airfield in Leicestershire before the lease was acquired to develop the site now known as Bedford Autodrome.

Palmer opened the venue in 1999 as four separate circuits with a total of six miles of track, to become the permanent home for PalmerSport. The venue is also used for trackdays.

Palmer launched the Formula Palmer Audi Championship in 1998 as a less costly alternative to Formula 3. Inaugural champion Justin Wilson went on to win the Formula 3000 championship. With Palmer managing his career, an innovative share issue in Wilson helped him secure a Formula One drive with Minardi.

In 2004, Palmer, John Britten, and Sir Peter Ogden acquired the Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park circuits from Octagon, under the umbrella of MotorSport Vision (MSV).[8] The company has turned around the fortunes of each circuit, and implemented a programme of improvements at each venue to develop better facilities for spectators and circuit users. Snetterton in particular has been revitalised under MSV ownership, with the circuit undergoing a near total redesign in 2011, with several new corners allowing for three different circuit configurations, and the addition of large spectator viewing areas.[9]

The company, with Palmer as Chief Executive, organised the Formula Palmer Audi Championship, acquired the commercial rights for the British Superbike Championship, and secured the right to operate the FIA Formula Two Championship from 2009 to 2012. It now runs the GB3 and GB4 Championships, as well as several other club series and championships under the MSVR banner.

In 2009, MSV acquired the freehold of 800 acres of the Bedford Autodrome site and opened Bedford Aerodrome as a CAA licensed airfield in 2010.

MSV completed the freehold purchase of a substantial former military airbase near Laon in north-east France in 2015, which is planned to be developed into a major international motorsports complex.[10]

In 2017 MSV acquired the Donington Park motor racing circuit,[11] and implemented a multi-million pound program of improvements at the East Midlands track[12] including a new bar, cafe and restaurant, a new circuit office, extensive resurfacing of paddock areas and internal roads and a new grandstand with views of the track.[13]

On 30 September 2022 it was announced that MSV won the bid for purchasing Circuito de Navarra in northern Spain. MSV has since completed the first phase of its programme of improvements involving a complete overhaul of the race control complex. This included new screens and upgraded CCTV technology, along with a complete exterior redecoration of the race control tower and main pit buildings, including all the garage doors. This exterior aesthetic overhaul has extended beyond that area too, elevating the FIA Grade 1T and Grade 2 circuit’s presentation to match its status as one of Spain’s best motorsport venues.

Personal life

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Palmer's two sons have both had successful motor racing careers. Jolyon Palmer, the 2014 GP2 Series champion, drove for RenaultSport F1 Team during the 2016 and 2017 seasons and is now a commentator and columnist for BBC Sport F1.[citation needed] Jonathan's younger son Will Palmer won the BRDC F4 Championship and the prestigious McLaren Autosport BRDC Award in 2015, and finished second in Renault Eurocup in 2017.

Palmer also has two daughters: Emily, an accountant, and Alice, a professional equestrian showjumper.

Palmer married Emma Collins in 2018, having separated from his first wife, Gill, in 2011.[citation needed]

Racing record

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Career summary

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Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
1980 Formula Ford 1600 N/A ? ? ? ? ? 42 6th
1981 British Formula Three West Surrey Racing 19 7 6 9 14 126 1st
European Formula Three 1 0 0 0 1 4 13th
European Touring Car Championship GTI Engineering 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
1982 European Formula Two Ralt Racing 11 0 1 0 1 10 9th
World Sportscar Championship Richard Lloyd Racing 3 0 0 0 0 10 46th
European Touring Car Championship Bastos Juma Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
1983 European Formula Two Ralt Racing 12 6 4 3 10 68 1st
World Sportscar Championship Richard Lloyd Racing 3 0 0 0 1 23 16th
European Endurance Championship 3 0 1 0 1 39 13th
IMSA GT Championship 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Japanese Formula Two Ralt Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
British Saloon Car Championship Cheylesmore BMW Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 2 29th
European Touring Car Championship Autosport & Design 1 0 0 0 1 0 NC
Formula One TAG Williams Team 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
1984 Formula One Skoal Bandit Formula 1 Team 14 0 0 0 0 0 NC
World Sportscar Championship GTI Engineering 8 1 1 2 3 75 6th
Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft N/A 3 1 1 ? 2 45 4th
1985 Formula One West Zakspeed Racing 7 0 0 0 0 0 NC
World Sportscar Championship Richard Lloyd Racing 4 0 0 1 1 39 12th
24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 0 0 1 N/A 2nd
IMSA GT Championship 1 0 0 0 0 N/A NC
1986 Formula One West Zakspeed Racing 16 0 0 0 0 0 NC
1987 Formula One Data General Team Tyrrell 15 0 0 0 0 7 11th
World Sportscar Championship Richard Lloyd Racing 7 1 0 0 1 31 19th
1988 Formula One Tyrrell Racing Organisation 14 0 0 0 0 5 14th
European Touring Car Championship Kaliber Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
1989 Formula One Tyrrell Racing Organisation 15 0 0 1 0 2 25th
1990 World Sportscar Championship Joest Porsche Racing 9 0 0 0 0 2 31st
1991 British Touring Car Championship BMW Team Finance 15 0 1 ? 2 66 7th
World Sportscar Championship Team Salamin Primagaz 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Team Sauber-Mercedes 1 0 0 0 0
All-Japan Sports Prototype Championship The Alpha Racing 1 0 0 0 0 3 40th

1st place in the Jim Clark Cup, for naturally aspirated cars.[14]

Complete European Formula Two Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Pos. Pts
1982 Ralt Racing Ralt RH6/82 Honda SIL
15
HOC
Ret
THR
11
NÜR
14
MUG
5
VAL
5
PAU
6
SPA
6
HOC
Ret
DON
3
MAN
Ret
PER
DNS
MIS 9th 10
1983 Ralt Racing Ralt RH6/83 Honda SIL
Ret
THR
3
HOC
1
NÜR
4
VAL
2
PAU
3
JAR
3
DON
1
MIS
1
PER
1
ZOL
1
MUG
1
1st 68

Complete Formula One results

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(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 WDC Pts
1983 TAG Williams Team Williams FW08C Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 BRA USW FRA SMR MON BEL DET CAN GBR GER AUT NED ITA EUR
13
RSA NC 0
1984 Skoal Bandit Formula 1 Team RAM 01 Hart 415T 1.5 L4 t BRA
8
RSA
Ret
NC 0
RAM 02 BEL
10
SMR
9
FRA
13
MON
DNQ
CAN DET
Ret
DAL
Ret
GBR
Ret
GER
Ret
AUT
9
NED
9
ITA
Ret
EUR
Ret
POR
Ret
1985 West Zakspeed Racing Zakspeed 841 Zakspeed 1500/4 1.5 L4 t BRA POR
Ret
SMR
DNS
MON
11
CAN DET FRA
Ret
GBR
Ret
GER
Ret
AUT
Ret
NED
Ret
ITA BEL EUR RSA AUS NC 0
1986 West Zakspeed Racing Zakspeed 861 Zakspeed 1500/4 1.5 L4 t BRA
Ret
ESP
Ret
SMR
Ret
MON
12
BEL
13
CAN
Ret
DET
8
FRA
Ret
GBR
9
GER
Ret
HUN
10
AUT
Ret
ITA
Ret
POR
12
MEX
10
AUS
9
NC 0
1987 Data General Team Tyrrell Tyrrell DG016 Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8 BRA
10
SMR
Ret
BEL
Ret
MON
5
DET
11
FRA
7
GBR
8
GER
5
HUN
7
AUT
14
ITA
14
POR
10
ESP
Ret
MEX
7
JPN
8
AUS
4
11th 7
1988 Tyrrell Racing Organisation Tyrrell 017 Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8 BRA
Ret
SMR
14
MON
5
MEX
DNQ
CAN
6
DET
5
FRA
Ret
GBR
Ret
GER
11
HUN
Ret
BEL
12
ITA
DNQ
POR
Ret
ESP
Ret
JPN
12
AUS
Ret
14th 5
1989 Tyrrell Racing Organisation Tyrrell 017B Ford Cosworth DFR 3.5 V8 BRA
7
25th 2
Tyrrell 018 SMR
6
MON
9
MEX
Ret
USA
9
CAN
Ret
FRA
10
GBR
Ret
GER
Ret
HUN
13
BEL
14
ITA
Ret
POR
6
ESP
10
JPN
Ret
AUS
DNQ
Source:[15]

1st place in the Jim Clark Cup, for naturally aspirated cars.[16]

Complete British Saloon / Touring Car Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position – 1983 in class) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap – 1 point awarded 1983 all races, 1983 in class)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 DC Pts Class
1983 Cheylesmore BMW Motorsport BMW 635CSi A SIL OUL THR BRH THR SIL DON SIL DON BRH SIL
5
30th 2 14th
1991 BMW Team Finance BMW M3 SIL
7
SNE
Ret
DON
Ret
THR
6
SIL
111
BRH
6
SIL
5
DON
1

4
DON
2

3
OUL
5
BRH
1

7
BRH
2

6
DON
Ret
THR
2
SIL
21
7th 66
  1. ^ – Race was stopped due to heavy rain. No points were awarded.

Complete European Touring Car Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 DC Pts
1981 United Kingdom GTI Engineering Audi 80 GTE MNZ VAL DON SAL BRN PER SIL
8†
ZOL NC 0
1982 Belgium Bastos Juma Racing BMW 528i MNZ VAL DON PER MUG BRN SAL NUR SPA SIL
18
ZOL NC 0
1983 United Kingdom Autosport & Design BMW 635CSi MNZ VAL DON PER MUG BRN ZEL NUR SAL SPA SIL
2†
ZOL NC 0
1988 United Kingdom Kaliber Racing Ford Sierra RS500 MNZ DON EST JAR DIJ VAL NÜR SPA ZOL SIL
6†
NOG NC 0
Source:[17]

† Not eligible for points.

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

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Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
1983 United Kingdom Canon Racing
United Kingdom GTi Engineering
Netherlands Jan Lammers
United Kingdom Richard Lloyd
Porsche 956 C 339 8th 8th
1984 United Kingdom GTi Engineering Netherlands Jan Lammers Porsche 956 C1 239 DNF DNF
1985 United Kingdom Richard Lloyd Racing United Kingdom James Weaver
United Kingdom Richard Lloyd
Porsche 956 GTi C1 371 2nd 2nd
1987 United Kingdom Liqui Moly Equipe United Kingdom James Weaver
United States Price Cobb
Porsche 962C GTi C1 112 DNF DNF
1990 Germany Joest Porsche Racing France Bob Wollek
France Philippe Alliot
Porsche 962C C1 DNS DNS
1991 Germany Team Sauber Mercedes Sweden Stanley Dickens
Denmark Kurt Thiim
Mercedes-Benz C11 C1 223 DNF DNF

References

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  1. ^ "Drivers: Jonathan Palmer". grandprix.com. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  2. ^ "Jonathan Palmer". ESPN UK. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  3. ^ "PalmerSport at Bedford Autodrome - The world's best corporate hospitality driving event". www.palmersport.com. Archived from the original on 5 November 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  4. ^ "Me and My Motor: Jonathan Palmer, former F1 driver turned circuit owner". 27 April 2018. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  5. ^ "PalmerSport | About PalmerSport | The world's greatest driving event". PalmerSport. 20 November 2019. Archived from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  6. ^ Collantine, Keith (13 July 2016). "Mansell wins in Piquet's car". racefans.net. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  7. ^ "McLaren F1 review". Car. Archived from the original on 9 November 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  8. ^ "Palmer buys up four tracks". Daily Echo. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  9. ^ "Agostini and Walker get Snetterton tribute". Crash.net. 17 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  10. ^ "MSV acquires former airbase in France for European expansion". news.msv.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
  11. ^ Cozens, Jack. "Donington Park taken over by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision". Autosport.com. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  12. ^ Johnson, Robin (21 December 2017). "Donington Park to get multi-million pound makeover". leicestermercury.co.uk. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  13. ^ "Jonathan Palmer: from F1 racer to Britain's top circuit boss | Autocar". www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  14. ^ "Jonathan Palmer : The Formula One DataBase". Archived from the original on 3 December 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2009.
  15. ^ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. pp. 277–8. ISBN 0851127029.
  16. ^ "Jonathan Palmer : The Formula One DataBase". Archived from the original on 3 December 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2009.
  17. ^ de Jong, Frank. "The European Touring Car Championship". History of Touring Car Racing 1952-1993. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
[edit]
Sporting positions
Preceded by British Formula Three Champion
1981
Succeeded by
Preceded by European Formula Two
Champion

1983
Succeeded by
Awards
Preceded by Autosport
British Competition Driver of the Year

1983
Succeeded by
Preceded by Autosport
British Competition Driver of the Year

1987
Succeeded by