2011 F1 season all set to go

The typical lazy Sunday evenings are not going to be the same anymore. It’s time to fasten the seatbelts and get ready for some adrenaline-pumping action. Yes, after the cancellation of Bahrain Grand Prix, the 2011 Formula 1 season is all set to begin in Melbourne this weekend, with all the happiness and disappointments of the previous season still lingering fresh in the minds of F1 fans across the world. 

Whats more, with the inaugural Indian Grand Prix scheduled on Oct-30-2011, we could even get to catch some action live from Delhi. With Force India among the competing teams and Narain Karthikeyan back in F1 with Hispania Racing, we Indians have all the more reasons to cheer.

An unprecedented 5 World Champions would be lining up on the grid this year in the form of Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and the defending champion Sebastian Vettel. Between them, these drivers have won 12 titles, an amazing 7 of them going to Schumacher, 2 to Alonso and 1 each to the other three. Add to them front-runners like Mark Webber, Felipe Massa and Nico Rosberg and you know that this is going to be no ordinary season.

The 2010 season was so extraordinary with so many twists and turns in the course of the championship that ended with a dramatic climax which stunned and shocked the audience in equal measure. An amazing comeback in the final few races of the season, especially in the season-ending Abu Dhabi saw Sebastian Vettel become the sport’s youngest ever world champion, while an extremely rare flawed strategy by the Ferrari team made sure that Fernando Alonso lost the championship by a whisker.

If this season is even half as dramatic as the last one, we are in for a treat. And, it promises to be more than that. While all the drivers would make sure that intra-team and inter-team rivalry is at its highest, the new-for-2011 quickly-degrading Pirelli tires, the adjustable rear wings and the return of KERS are sure to make things more interesting for us and a bit messy for the drivers. I just can't wait for it all to begin.

Not to forget that Robert Kubica, the highly rated Renault driver who was involved in a horrific crash at a rally event a couple of months back, is recovering quicker than expected. Once back, he is sure to spice things up even more.