2015 Formula 1 World Championship

The 2015 Formula One season has only just begun, but defending champion Lewis Hamilton is already an odds on favourite to successfully retain the crown following his victory in the Australian Grand Prix. Hamilton is currently a 1/3 chance over at betfair.com to land the 2015 F1 Championship, and it is not hard to understand why, with the Mercedes car seemingly head and shoulder above any of the other teams as things stand. The reigning champion faced a real battle with team mate Nico Rosberg last season and we could be in store for more of the same this time around, with Rosberg finishing in second position behind Hamilton in Australia. The German will no doubt be desperate to go one better by winner the Driver’s Championship in 2015, and he could well make up the current seven point gap with a positive result come the next Grand Prix in Malaysia. Nico Rosberg is a 5/2 chance with Betfair to win the world title for Mercedes this year.

A four time Formula One world champion, Sebastian Vettel will be hoping that his recent switch to the iconic Ferrari team will pay dividends this season. Vettel won the F1 title in four consecutive years with Red Bull from 2010 to 2013, but was unable to challenge last year and his relationship with Red Bull appeared to have run its course. Still one of the biggest names in Formula One, Vettel ‘s move to Ferrari seemed like a no-brainer, with Fernando Alonso leaving the Italian giants to join McLaren-Honda. Sebastian Vettel has never disguised his desire to one day drive for the Ferrari team, and it could well be that this is a match made in heaven, with Ferrari looking for a talented and charismatic driver to help get them back among the very best teams in F1. For Vettel, his abilities and past achievements demand a car that can at least be competitive, and it looks likely that this is the case if a recent third place finish at the Australian Grand Prix is anything to go by. Sebastian Vettel can be backed at odds of 20/1 with Betfair to win the 2015 Drivers Championship.

Fernando Alonso was involved in a accident during pre-season testing, and is scheduled to make a return to the grid in the coming weeks. The Spaniard is a two time Formula One champion and arguably still one of the top three drivers in the game today. Alonso has been responsible for the growth in popularity of Formula One in Spain and the thirty three year old is certainly one of the biggest personalities within the sport. Never one to back down from a challenge, Fernando Alonso has been involved in a variety of controversies throughout his long Formula One career, and his switch to McLaren-Honda for the 2015 campaign is definitely going to provide the Spaniard with plenty of interesting times ahead. Off the back of the first Grand Prix of the season in Australia, McLaren would appear to have a mountain to climb if they are going to be anywhere near competitive this season, and it doesn’t seem like just a few tweaks to the car is going to be sufficient for this team to have an impact. The press are suggesting that the Honda engine is simply not up to scratch, and is going to need a complete overhaul if either Alonso or Jenson Button are going to challenge for podium places during the current F1 campaign. Fernando Alonso is a 150/1 shot to win the 2015 Drivers Championship with Betfair.