SEBASTIAN VETTEL is Paddy Power’s 9-4 favourite to retain his crown as the Formula One prepares to finally get off the starting grid for the new season.
After the enforced two-week delay punters have been piling into their pre-season bets – and the impressive Red Bulls are their choice to do it again.
Vettel will no doubt be made to battle all the way again and is closely followed in Paddy Power’s betting by Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso at 11-4.
Britain’s hopes again rest on the McLaren duo of Lewis Hamilton at 6-1 and Jenson Button, almost an outsider, at 12-1.
The new McLaren is not yet setting the world alight in testing and it's 10-1 for the team to not win all season. Hamilton looks set to again be the team’s lead driver and is just 2-7 with Paddy Power that he finishes above his team-mate and 1-4 he picks up more wins.
Force India’s Scots new boy Paul di Resta is unlikely to make it a three-pronged Brit attack as a 150-1 outsider.
Seven-time winner Michael Schumacher, now at Mercedes, is 10-1 to win his eighth world title with team-mate Nico Rosberg not far behind at 12-1.
You may be forgiven for a double take this weekend as two teams confusingly line up at the weekend bearing the famous name and a bitter feud looks set to hot up as Team Lotus and Lotus Renault head for court.
Whatever the legal outcome, on the track Team Lotus looks set to struggle and are 9-4 to not finish ahead of their rivals in any race throughout the season.
For the opening Grand Prix in Melbourne this weekend Paddy Power has world champion Vettel as the 2-1 favourite with Alonso close behind at 3-1 and Webber 9-2.
Resident football tipster at Scotland's most read newspaper, the Daily Record, for over 20 years and proud host of one the best betting communities on the web with daily betting tips.
