For sports gambling enthusiasts with a particular interest in Formula One motor racing, next weekend sees the start of another action packed season. Early on Sunday morning the Australian Grand Prix will kick start a season which promises motor racing gambling fans yet another roller coaster ride which will again culminate in Interlagos with potentially a new world champion. Clearly Sebastion Vettel will again start as favourite to retain the title in the Red Bull, but no one can ever rule out Fernando Alonso in the Ferrari or Jenson Button in his McLaren and both of these drivers are likely to win at least one race during what is a long season. F1 gambling fans will also be curious as to what progress the Mercedes team can make now that Lewis Hamilton is their lead driver. Hamilton’s exit from McLaren could be the deciding factor in this year’s season, and early season practice sessions certainly indicate that Mercedes have produced a much more competitive car than that in which Schumacher struggled to compete last year. Motor racing gambling fans will of course be wary of any conclusions being drawn from pre-season practice times, but if Hamilton does have a competitive car he is bound to make an impact at some time during the season. At the start of a new F1 season it is always difficult to predict a winner, and gambling on motor racing is not an exact science. All the top drivers are fast, but the reliability of the cars is just as important as raw speed and collisions can wipe out the chances of any driver at any time, particularly on the first corner of many circuits. F1 gambling fans have become used to seeing their favourite crash out of the race at the first corner, and even the driver on pole is not guaranteed a clean start in Formula One. The 2013 season will certainly throw up the usual surprise results and if Mercedes do have a competitive car there could be four teams in with a shout this year. We look forward to an exciting season of F1 gambling.