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After the accident that placed Felipe Massa in hospital, Michael Schumacher was being touted as the driver to replace him at Ferrari while Massa recovers. In the end, Luca Badoer ($34 for a win @ SportingBet.com.au) was selected as the replacement. With all this excitement, people have been talking about little else and there is much anticipation for this weekend’s European F1 Grand Prix to be held around the streets of Valencia.

While the comeback of the retired legend German legend is not going to be happening (at least for now), the matter of the 2009 drivers championship is back into discussion. This years’ battle for the championship has been very interesting up until the month long break and should continue to be very competitive.

The question on many people’s minds is will Brawn GP be able to regain the early season form that seen an amazing debut season start for the team? Without the benefit of any mid-season testing and restricted development time, can Brawn fix up all their bugs in time for the grand prix in Valencia?

Ross Brawn, team principal and technical brain, is convinced that one of the modifications that have been made to the car has been seriously detrimental to the cars ability to get heat in to the tyres. The problems that Brawn GP has faced have seriously hampered the grip level of the vehicle that saw Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello ($34 for a win @ SportingBet.com.au) dominate in the opening rounds.

The Spanish home crowd will be happily cheering as their national hero Fernando Alonso and his team, Renault, have been given the green light to race in Valencia on the weekend. It was a possibility that Renault would not compete after an incident in the Hungarian GP that saw them incorrectly fit a wheel to the Spaniard’s car, which later came off further around the track. Renault was able to win the appeal which they made to the FIA after a ban was imposed.

The race organisers, along with the home fans will most certainly be happy to see that the ban has been lifted. Romain Grosjean will also have a smile on his face as he is set to make his formula one debut after the sacking of Nelson Piquet Jr. after the Hungarian GP.

After taking a win at the Hungaroring before the month long break, McLaren will be looking to continue with the improvement that they have made since the start of the season. Lewis Hamilton is tipped to be the outright winner this weekend with odds of $3.25 at Sporting Bet.

McLaren is believed to have the best KERS system in the field and they were able to use it o great effect in Hungary. KERS is looking to be the main weapon in the arsenal of McLaren this weekend as overtaking opportunities will be few and far between.

Last year’s maiden grand prix in Valencia showed that overtaking was next to impossible. The teams whose drivers are equipped with the KERS system will be looking to use it to maximum effect off the grid to make up a few extra positions.

For those that get caught behind as a result of this will be suffering a major setback as they may find themselves trapped behind another driver slower than them with no passing opportunity.

In my opinion, anyone not running KERS will more than likely be running light, as they will be looking to hold position off of the grid and possibly make a fast getaway to take an early lead.

My prediction for the podium finishers gives first place to Lewis Hamilton ($3.25 for a win), second to Jenson Button ($8 for a win) and third place to Sebastian Vettel ($3.75 for a win @ SportingBet.com.au).

Sportingbet are covering the F1 round this weekend and give new customers a offer hard to refuse. Simply make an account with Sportingbet and deposit $30 or more and they will credit you with a $100 free bet that can be place on this weekends race!

It has been an unforgettable year for Australian Formula 1 driver Mark Webber. For years he has been carrying the tag of ‘the unluckiest man in racing’ driving cars that simply weren’t up to scratch. But in 2009 his luck seems to have changed as his team, Red Bull Racing, and new comers Braun have over taken the likes of Mclaren and Ferrari to become the top teams in the competition.

Braun are the surprise leaders and are storming away with the constructors championships, but with Red Bull taking first and second in Britain there is no doubt that are catching. Mark Webber made his fourth podium finish behind team mate Sebastian Vettel and will go into the next race in Germany full of confidence and fully expecting to take out his first F1 victory. But can the Australian really pull it off? God Knows the guy deserves it and with the Red Bull car absolutely flying at the moment there is no reason why he can’t.

The only downfall for him may be that his team mate Sebastian Vettel is ahead of him in the drivers standing and the Red Bull team may go with a stratergy that suits him rather than Webber. But if Webber can make pole and then just keep his cool in to the first turn it will be his race to lose. Go to Sportsbet now for your free bet on Red Bull pulling in Braun in the Constructors Championships it is well worth a little punt.

While we are all hoping that Webber can produce some magic in Germany we also hoping that he can keep it up in to next years championships in Melbourne, which is now back on after some doubt over the F1 season for 2010. It was looking as though there could be two seperate factions when eight of the top teams including Mark Webbers Red Bull team decided that they would pull out of F1 in 2010.

The decision to quit had come after F1 bosses decidied to cut team spending to just $40 million for next season, but with the likes of Ferrari and Mclaren regularly spending three times that the decision had caused alot of unreast. But after last-ditch talks between FIA president Max Mosley, FOTA chairman Luca di Montezemolo and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, an agreement was reached that commits the teams to the sport until 2012. It is great news for racing fans and great news for Webber who can now take his competetive team to Melbourne and put on a show for his home crowd.

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