A new season is upon us and i for one cannot wait.
The prospect of Michael Schumacher making his return to Formula 1, Jensen Button moving to McLaren and Alonso’s move to Ferrari is just a small part to the story that is about to unfold over the next 9 months. Although lining up on the grid will be four world championship winners there will be no Kimi Raikkonen. Im sure everyone who reads this will join me in agreeing that it isn’t bad news. Mr personality (no sarcasm there) won’t be there to cheer us all up in his press conferences or whatever it maybe. Could it be why Ferrari had such a bad season last year? Some say it’s the Fin’s way which i would agree with if we take a look at Mika Hakkinen’s personality but at least he smiled! Heikki Kovalainen however proves that all F1 drivers from Finland aren’t all morbid.
Let’s take a look at how the teams and drivers line up.
McLaren – Lewis Hamilton & Jensen Button
The all British line up. In my opinion although its great to see i do think this is a recipe for disaster. After a bad season last year McLaren will be looking to get off to the best possible start in Bahrain. I think all eyes will be on Hamilton and Button to see how they pair up as a team because both will want to challenge for the championship title. Button will want to retain and Hamilton will want to regain. Being English and a huge fan of F1 this is clearly my team for the season.
Mercedes GP – Michael Schumacher & Nico Rosberg
The all German line up but not the main story from this team. Formally known as Brawn GP, the team that won Jensen Button the title now have Michael Schumacher. Coming out of retirement after failing to do so for the remainder of last season Michael Schumacher will be one driver to watch this year. Never being a fan myself i think it will be interesting to see how he adapts to the latest technology and if he still has it. If i remember correctly Im sure thats why he retired when he did because the FIA removed the drivers assists in the cars. Funny that??? Partnered with Nico Rosberg i think it’s clear who Mercedes GP have as their number 1 driver.
Red Bull – Sebastian Vettel & Mark Webber
After a very successful season last year i would put money on an outside chance and another very strong title challenge from Vettel. He is a very talented driver and if Red Bull can put together another good car this year Vettel has a very good chance. Teamed up with Mark Webber who won his first grand prix last season i think Red Bull will be there or there about.
Ferrari – Felipe Massa & Fernando Alonso
Anyone taking bets that this line up could also be a recipe for disaster? Remember Hamilton and Alonso at McLaren? I can see Alonso causing more problems now at Ferrari. First of all Ferrari need to produce a better car. Both Massa and Raikkonen struggled in the car last season with both way of the pace. It will be interesting to see how Massa performs and to see if there is any psychological damage from his bad accident. Alonso certainly has the ability proving it with back to back championship wins a few seasons a go but since then his stubbornness and sometimes reckless driving has taken over.
Williams – Rubens Barrichello & Nico Hulkenberg
The veteran is still going and going strong but this could be his last season in F1. Maybe it was his rare win last year for Brawn GP that is keeping him going. Keep the faith Rubens but by teams standards you have dropped down unfortunately. Nico Hulkenberg is new to formula 1 so not a lot expected from him then. Just enjoy it while you possibly can.
Renault – Robert Kubica & Vitaly Petrov
Another driver that has experienced a horrific accident a few seasons back Kubica has shown signs that he can challenge but is Renault the team that can back this? Coming up to formula 1 the same season as Hamilton, Kubica did show his ability but since his accident he fell off the pace. As i said earlier this could happen to Massa (fingers crossed). It could be a season for Kubica to show again what he can do but that we will have to wait and see. Vitaly Petrov is also a new comer to formula 1 so again lets see how he copes.
Force India – Adrian Sutil & Vitantonio Liuzzi
Back again for another season Force India as we know are a team to make up the numbers. Still in development they have a fairly decent driver line up in Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi and should pick up some points over the course of the season.
Toro Rosso – Sebastien Buemi & Jaime Alguersuari
Another team to make up the numbers Toro Rosso will be looking to do well with Buemi now on board after picking some good experience last season. After picking up 6 points for himself Buemi will be looking to improve on that and develop into a better driver. Jaime Alguersuari is also new to F1. Still only 19 Alguersuari will do well to finish in as many races as he can. Good experience for him though.
Lotus – Jarno Trulli & Heikki Kovalainen
Welcome to formula 1 Lotus and good luck! Red Bull and various other teams had to start somewhere though didn’t they? I have a feeling if they stay in F1 for a while Lotus could go far. With drivers Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen Lotus have drivers with a lot of experience which will be exploited. Jarno Trulli now possibly know as a veteran can lead Lotus to points and Heikki Kovalainen now being dropped by McLaren will feel he has something to prove. Seriously watch this space.
HRT – Karun Chandhok & Bruno Senna
Welcome to formula 1 HRT and good luck! No seriously you will need it. Another new team with two new drivers. It can only mean back of the grid or somewhere round there for every race can’t it? Karun Chandhok and Bruno Senna will do well not to crash, never mind get anywhere near points. I do like to be proved wrong though.
BMW Sauber – Pedro de la Rosa & Kamui Kobayashi
BMW Sauber find themselves so far down the pecking order now which is a shame. They too also have a lot of potential to do better and with the experience of Pedro de la Rosa they do have an outside chance of picking up a few points but still end up further down the starting grid. Kamui Kobayashi is new to F1 so same applies to him. Do well, get good experience and be safe! No accidents please.
Virgin – Timo Glock & Lucas di Grassi
This is brilliant! Richard Branson WAKE UP! It’s not going to work again. This isn’t Brawn GP and you don’t have Ross Brawn, Jensen Button or a good car. Good luck to them though. Timo Glock isn’t bad and he does have some experience in formula 1 which will be vital for the Virgin team. It will be interesting to see how it pans out for them and like i said before every team has to start somewhere. Good times maybe ahead for Mr Branson. Lucas di Grassi is also new so pressure is on at this team for him but don’t we all hope he does well?
So there you have it. My preview of F1 2010/11 is complete and now i will wait like the rest of you for 5 more days until it starts. As far as predictions go i think its still too tough to pick out the championship winner from that list of drivers. With the return of Schumacher and drivers swapping teams for the possible best or worst i feel it makes it far too hard to predict. I would hope either Hamilton or Button can do it with McLaren, however i do feel Schumacher and Vettel will have their say on the matter. Yes, that does mean right now Im ruling out Massa, Alonso and Ferrari. Not because Im not a fan though….honest 
Watch this space.
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