Jolyon Palmer says his performance at the Japanese Grand Prix, where he finished 12th, was stronger than his top 10 result at Sepang.
The British driver picked up his first F1 point with 10th place at the Malaysian Grand Prix, but believes his drive at Suzuka was better.
Palmer out-qualified Renault team-mate Kevin Magnussen to start 15th and lined up on the medium tyre, before making up a few places with a long final stint on the hard compound.
He eventually crossed the line in 12th place, two spots ahead of Magnussen. In a race where all 22 runners finished, Palmer feels it was the better drive compared to Malaysia.
“Tenth last week, twelfth this week, but this week everyone finished the race,” he said.
“We had a lot of luck last week and I think today [Sunday] was actually a stronger performance.
“We beat everyone that we could this afternoon. I’m pleased with how we went, the strategy, the pace, performance… Everything was good.”
