JOLYON Palmer is pumped up to get off the mark for Renault as the Formula 1 season heads for Barcelona this weekend.

The British driver's teammate, Kevin Magnusse,n delivered the first points of the season for the Enstone-based team at the Russian Grand Prix last month.

And Palmer, in his maiden season, is keen to start contributing in Spain.

He said: "A strong, solid weekend would be nice.

“We’ve made progress with the car and I’m happy with the balance and how it drives again.

“Kevin scored points for the team in Russia so we know what’s possible.

“It’s the first race in Europe and at a track we all know really well.

“I’m pretty pumped up for a strong weekend.”

Chipping Norton's Sean Walkinshaw and teammate Ricardo Sánchez earned their best result of the Blancpain Sprint Cup season on Sunday.

The pair finished third in the Silver Cup class and 22nd overall at Brands Hatch in Kent for the Nissan GT Academy Team RJN.

Walkinshaw said: "Brands is a pretty tight track for so many cars, so to come through with third in the Silver Cup wasn’t bad going."

The next round of the Sprint Cup season is not until July 2 at the Nurburgring, but Walkinshaw is in action this weekend at Silverstone for the Blancpain Endurance Cup.