Postpublished at 05:18 British Summer Time 8 October 2017
Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer
![Jolyon Palmer](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/640/cpsprodpb/vivo/live/images/2017/10/8/d3085159-a53b-45aa-b461-ed5d3dd1abbe.jpg.webp)
Starting at the back of the grid is hardly the way Jolyon Palmer would have chosen to start his last grand prix for Renault - what could well be his last grand prix ever - but an engine penalty means that’s his lot.
Although it was a difficult weekend for the team, the car lacking downforce and slower than the McLarens despite Suzuka being a power circuit, Palmer’s qualifying performance was one of his better ones - his margin of 0.264secs was only the fifth time all season he has been closer to Nico Hulkenberg than half a second, and way better than his average deficit of more than 0.6secs.
It was announced on Saturday evening in Japan that Palmer and Renault had reached agreement for him to leave the team after this race, to be replaced by Carlos Sainz - after weeks of Renault trying to make that deal work. Palmer has fallen short in F1, but he has tried hard, and it would be churlish to hope for anything other than for him to have a good race with which to sign off from F1, whether it be for now or forever.