Formula 1 2012 Quick Preview

When The formula one season gets underway in Melbourne this weekend, 6 world champions will line up on the grid for the first time, will they make it an unmissable exciting year, full of drama on and off the track, or will Sebastien Vettel run away with it again leaving the others to battle for the title best of the rest?

The return of Kimi Raikkonen is great for the sport, he only left because Ferrari wanted Alonso and couldn't find a competitive drive elsewhere. After 2 years failing as a rally driver, at 31 he is still young enough to make an impression on the sport.

Pre season testing is notorious for showing very little about who is on top and who is struggling for form, although listening to the drivers and teams throughout testing gives us an idea of what is to come. What many believe is that the teams are much closer than previous seasons.

Red Bull are still the team to beat, they have had the fastest car since 2009 and have simply evolved the car rather than have to start afresh.

Mclaren are hot on their toes, and with arguably the best driver pairing, along with the ability to update their car dramatically through the season they are sure to be in the hunt.


Mercedes have taken great steps forward in the winter, and if they can produce a race winning car the battle between Schumi and Rosberg will be worth watching.

Ferrari though have struggled to understand their radicle new car, so may be playing catch up throughout the season. Behind the scenes they will be working hard to put it right, with changes in management at Ferrari they will not accept another unsuccessful year.

The best of the rest seems to be team lotus (formally Renault), but with headline signing Kimi Raikonnen, have they just been trying to make headlines with quick times, without testing reliability and other aspects, only time will tell. After all they lost time in testing because of problems with the chassis.

Williams will be hoping to bounce back from a disastrous 2011, and caterham (formally lotus) will be looking at moving up the grid. Unfortunately for HRT and Marussia (formally Virgin) though, nothing they have said or done suggests they will be any closer to rest of the pack this season.

So with 20 races from Australia to Brazil on 25 November, and 500 points up for grabs, the chase is on to become the best driver in the world.

F1 on sky, Ridiculous or Genius

For the first time ever formula 1 won't be available to watch every race live on free to air television. The decision to sell the rights to sky has been largely criticised and met with anger aimed at the BBC, but how will it actually affect the sport?

In Formula 1 there are two types of fan, the hardcore fan and the casual fan. Every hardcore fan that doesn't have access to Sky is extremely annoyed to say the least. Knowing the result only tells part of the story of the race, a story that can only be told properly live and uninterrupted.

Using football as a comparable, audiences on sky could be less than a third of what the BBC attracts, audiences were at a ten year high last season so teams and sponsors will be watching viewing figures closely. If only 2 million rather than 7million people will see their brand across the cars, will sponsorship deals be slashed, resulting in less money for designing the cars etc?

The problem is if you haven't got sky but want to watch the big football match of the week, it will be shown in pubs everywhere, but with race times varying so much, who wants to get up and go to the pub at 7am?

If hardcore fans and teams worst fears become reality, could this be the beginning of the end of formula 1?

But on the other side of the coin, could this be a genius idea to make it more appealing to new fans and more enjoyable for the casual fan? Critics and people that don't really understand f1 will say things like 'the only good bits are the start and the pit stops, with minimal track excitement.' They could have a point. Would they be more willing to watch a highlights show, on a couple of hours after the race? Would missing a few laps behind a safety car, or a couple where drivers are waiting for their next pit stop really effect the spectacle? The casual market could prosper with the new BBC setup, get more fans tuning in and understanding what F1 is about.

Whether it loses any fans or gains others, if money drops out the sport or more comes in, or if this really is the beginning of the end of formula 1 as we know it, Only time (and viewing figures) will tell.

BBC F1 homepage
Sky Sports F1 homepage

The Tail of Two Short Lists

The defining moments of the remaining months of this season could be affected by two managerial short lists. Who do the FA want and who does Abramovich want for Chelsea? Can the managers who's names are being branded around by the media continue to focus on their current jobs and see through their aims.

Let's start with the fans favourites for both jobs. There is continuous cries for a return of Mourinho to the helm at Chelsea. It's unlikely he will take the job unless he gets full control of the whole club something Roman is highly unlikely to grant anyone, least of all a man he once sacked. Mourinho has been spotted in London recently but this could be him playing his famous mind games again.

It seems unanimous that Redknapp is the fans, media and players choice to take over as the national team manager. We are all just waiting for the FA to ask him, however when Harry sits down and seriously considers it will he risk his reputation? What he has built at Spurs can not be understated at just how impressive it is and he would be a brave man to walk away and allow someone else take the plaudits if they win trophies.

What about the men currently in position, both in experienced, both at the beginning of their managerial careers, if we are honest both jobs are probably to big and to early for both men.

So who else for Chelsea? Benitez, Pep Guardiola or even Harry himself (although very unlikely). And England? Hodgson, O'Niell or even Mourinho? Both jobs have be called poisoned by many different people, suggesting your never be able to win! So who in their right mind would risk it all and take the plunge?

These questions will surly dominate the pages of the papers over the next few month, sagas that drag on as long as Fabregas to Barca! One thing is for sure no-one can really predict either, Abramovich is hard to work out, Redknapp may wish to stay put and a final twist would Mourinho prefer to take over at Spurs if Redknapp decided to leave. Who knows it could be anyone!