Michael Schumacher has said that the Ferrari team, a team and car that hold so many good memories for him will be the ones to beat this season. Their drivers are Fernando Alonso and the returning Felipe Massa, now fully recovered from a horrific and potentially life-threatening facial injury suffered during a race last season. It is great to see him back in action. Alonso is the heavy favourite in the betting for the World Championship and has betting odds of 7/4. Team-mate Massa is further back in the betting at 10/1.

10/1 for Massa may be value odds as should the Ferrari be the strongest car then he certainly has the ability to battle Alonso at the front of the race for the win. He was very unlucky not to win the World title in 2008 when a mechanical problem cost him the championship on the last bend when Lewis Hamilton just managed to win his maiden World Championship.

Sebastian Vettel is second favourite at 9/2. He drives for Red Bull along with Mark Webber and it is worth noting that despite Brawn GP being very strong in the driving championships last year Red Bull were second and arguably stronger at the end of the season. They only lost the Constructor championship by 19.5 points and could be a threat this year. Webber won his first Grand Prix at the end of the 2009 season and a sports bet can be placed on Mark to win the championship at 12/1.

There is sure to be much speculation about how well Michael Schumacher will do this season. He has played down his chances of victory in the Drivers championship but you know he will be desperate for success this season. His odds to win reflect the public’s belief in him and he is 11/2 to win another World Championship title. Famed for his aggressive and often dangerous manoeuvres will the fact he now has nothing to prove have mellowed him out? He will be very keen to show young guns like Alonso and Hamilton exactly why he holds amazing records for fastest laps and most Grand Prix wins. He most certainly wants to win and his presence guarantees huge exposure and excitement for this seasons Formula 1 season.

Race 1 is in Sakhir, Bahrain which kicks off the new season on the 12th to 14th March. Nineteen Grand Prix races will take place between the start race and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 14th. Will Button retain his title? Will Hamilton remind us why he was thought of as the best young driver in the world a couple of seasons ago or will Vettel, Webber, Alonso or Massa spoil Schumacher’s comeback party and dominate the season like Button did last year? Stayed tuned for the race betting at bwin which will appear closer to the event and look out for more F1 betting articles in the near future.

By Malcolm Clarke