Renault's Palmer not ruling out 2017 podium

Jan.4 - Renault can target points and maybe even a podium in 2017.

That is the claim of Jolyon Palmer, even though the French team's incoming new driver, Nico Hulkenberg, has warned that breaking into the top ten this year might be tough.

Indeed, Palmer scored just a single point in 2016, but the Briton thinks Renault will make a big breakthrough this year.

"We think the top three - Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari - will continue to lead, but we can fight in the next group with Williams, Force India, McLaren and maybe Toro Rosso," Palmer told Autocar.

"We want to be fighting for points in every race."

However, Renault's best finish of last year was the departing Kevin Magnussen's 7th in Russia.

But Palmer says a podium is not even out of the question.

"I dream of a podium," he admitted.

"Obviously, everything's up in the air at present. If we scored a podium, it would have to be the result of a perfect race.

"But if Force India can get two of them in 2016, we can do it this year. That's what I feel right now, anyway," said Palmer.

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Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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