Background and career
Jonathan Charles Palmer (born 7 November 1956) is a British former racing driver, motorsport executive, and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from 1983 to 1989. 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. 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, and was the winner of the Jim Clark Trophy, a competition for drivers of non-turbo cars which existed only for the 1987 season. 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. He is 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 and GB4. His son, Jolyon, competed in Formula One from 2016 to 2017.
Jonathan Charles Palmer was born on 7 November 1956 in Lewisham, London, England.
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. 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, 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.
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 eighth place, three ninth places, one tenth place, and one 13th place. 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 eighth 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. In 1987, Palmer talked to McLaren team principal and co-owner 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 Australia that he achieved his career-best fourth-place finish. He also won the Jim Clark Trophy, a championship for drivers of normally aspirated cars. He stayed with Tyrrell for the next two seasons, during which his best results were two fifth-place finishes and three sixth-place finishes. At the end of 1989, he signed as McLaren's test driver.
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.
In 1987, Palmer took part in the Toyota Rallysprint at Brands Hatch, which he won overall. 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 Formula One, and in 1997 Palmer joined the CBC for its annual commentary on the Grand Prix of Canada. In both 1995 and 1996, Palmer participated in the Goodwood Festival of Speed, setting the fastest time of the shootout.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
