Jolyon Palmer has taken part in his first official FIA Press Conference since becoming a fully fledged F1 driver. Here's what the Renault Sport Formula One racer said in Melbourne ahead of his first ever Grand Prix... 

Twenty-five years old, GP2 champion in 2014, you’ve also waited a few years for this opportunity. What’s the best thing about now becoming a Formula One driver?

Jolyon Palmer: Well, racing! It was a bit frustrating last year having a year on the sidelines after GP2, but I learned a lot and it makes it even sweeter to be here racing again. I was out here last year seeing what Melbourne’s all about, did the track walk, was ready to go, but of course as a reserve driver you rarely get the chance. So looking forward to getting behind the wheel for at least an FP2 and an FP3 as well this time.

Well, it was Lotus last season, the team has now become Renault, so what should we expect from you and this team this season?

JP: Well, it’s difficult to say at this moment. Taking over from Lotus there were a lot of difficulties over the winter, everything was a little bit late. The expectations are pretty low and this year is just about building a foundation. So I think we need to build a solid base and the team has a lot of potential to move forward in the next few years.

Are points achievable for you this year and how soon do you think you might be in a position to challenge for points?

JP: I think for us it’s definitely a goal for us to be in the points at some point in the season. I think that if we can start off with a solid base this weekend then I think we’ve got good potential to improve over the course of the season and so definitely, we hope to be in the points.