Hamilton v Button

The 2010 F1 season is sure to be an interesting season from the word go. Not because for the first time we might have an all Malaysian F1 team that will surely go into administration at the first corner, or Shuey back again in an F1 seat driving for Merc F1, nope, none of these reasons. It will be the Hamilton v Button saga.

So who will it be next year? Will it be Lewis or will it be Jenson? Both are World Champions driving almost identical cars. It is definitely a difficult one to say. Or is it?

For me, it will have to be Lewis. Nothing to do with him being my favourite driver, no. Consider these points.

The end of the 2009 F1 season was all about Jenson, will he make it or not. Media was hot on him. But what many didn't realise was that, Lewis was slowly but surely edging towards the front. He was getting more familiar with his machine. Of course he did take his time getting used to it, but we definitely saw improvement towards the end of it.

It is these improvements that he will be taking forward to the 2010 season.

For Jenson, yes, he will still have the buzz of his latest winning. No doubt he will feel confident tackling the first corner of the season. But will it be that easy? Surely not. Winning the Championship is never easy. He sure as hell will try it and so will Lewis. But has anyone considered these points?

Jenson won in a Brawn car. Although all cars look almost identical, under the skin, there are thousands of parts that are different depending on which manufacturer it is.

Jenson can, and maybe will win again if it is in a Brawn or Merc (whatever they're calling it for next season) car. But not in a McLaren. Nope.

Getting used to an F1 car is not a simple as getting used to a new road car. It is not like jumping out of a Mondeo and into a Vectra. Or a Fiesta into a Corsa.

The controls are different. The aerodynamics are different. The downforce is different. The steering weight and feel is different. All these are things Jenson will need to get used to before he can comfortably set off and win the season.

Lewis has. He was getting used to all this when all eyes was on Jenson winning the 2009 season.

So based on all these, my prediction is, McLaren winning the manufacturers and Lewis winning the 2010 title.

How can you not agree?