When Webber put his car on pole there was the fear that the mighty Red Bull machine would pull clear at the start and ride off into the sunset because after all the last time anyone other than Webber lead a race was back in China. My fears of a procession proved to be unfounded though as the race threw up plenty of spills and drama that left us with a ton of talking points not least of all the collision between the two Red Bull cars when they seemed set to finish first and second.

For a while there was talk of rain and I was hoping it would come and spice up the race a little but as the time for the rain to start was put back further and further it turned out that the wet stuff would not be required to make it an interesting race … the Red Bull boys delivered the drama for us when Sebastian Vettel went up the inside of race leader and team-mate Mark Webber before preceded to turn into the side of him taking both drivers off the track. Vettel’s race ended at that point, Webber recovered to hang onto third place but while he tried to remain calm and orderly during the post-race press conference you could see in his eyes that he was absolutely furious and it would have been fun to be a fly on the wall of the Red Bull debrief sometime there after when Webber would confront Vettel.

The move infuriated me also … In my predictor pool I had Webber down for the win and Vettel’s moment of madness destroyed that. Still, the McLaren’s took full advantage and moved into the first/second spots which they would control for the rest of the race and as such move themselves to the top of the constructors standings. Once they took the first and second places the only question was who would come out the winner and when Jenson Button stormed round the outside of Hamilton out of nowhere it looked like the reigning World Champion might indeed spring the surprise. As he said himself after the race, he had to go for it, though Hamilton being Hamilton he was not going to bow so easily and so he kept tight to Button, kept on the inside and heading down into turn one was able to come past Button this time as both drivers touched wheels before Hamilton regained his lead. It was dramatic stuff but a display to Red Bull on how two team mates should race wheel-to-wheel. McLaren team principle, Martin Whitmarsh, must have been on the edge of his seat with fear as he watched his two drivers put on a fine display of overtaking racing. I’m not sure what was said in the radio’s but following this move both drivers were ordered to conserve fuel which was running low and so the dog-fight ended and the result was set. It’s certainly nice to see that team orders are not in place with either Red Bull or McLaren and that both teams are happy for their drivers to race, it’s just a shame only one team seemed capable of a clean fight. Still, a few collisions only add to the drama for us fans.

When both Red Bulls had collided it was Michael Schumacher driving in 5th that looked set to benefit almost as much as Hamilton … Webber looked like he might lose serious time with a damaged wing but managed to get in and get a repair and back out in 3rd before Schumacher could get in front of him. It was the closest the German legend has come to standing on the podium so far this season with his 4th place finish but he looked excellent in a car which is clearly slower than the two in front of him. McLaren and Red Bull look to be in a different class than the rest right now but lately Schumacher has been proving himself to be the best of the race as he kept his team-mate behind as well as the Ferrari’s and Renault’s. If only Mercedes could find a second or so per lap he would be right there mixing it with the other two and if he gets close to them on pace I feel race victories won’t be far behind. I said a few months ago that it would take Schumacher five or six races to get up to speed again after his three year absence … that has proven to be right, but now its just a matter of finding a car that allows him to compete rather than be the best of the rest.

The F1 circus moves to Canada next and I’ll have the pleasure of being there. Keep your eyes to the right of the site for plenty of Twitter updates from Montreal as I head up on the Thursday night for a weekends worth of car racing action as well as fun in and around that fine city. The F1 championship is nicely poised for me heading to Montreal … Webber leads the title with 93 points, Button is second on 88, Hamilton third on 84, Alonso forth on 79 with Vettel fifth on 78. Michael Schumacher is back in 9th with 34 but might be further up was it not for his demotion at Monaco two weeks ago. Look for him to climb the standings rapidly. Also Montreal will make for intriguing viewing as the two Red Bull boys take to the track side by side one again and Button looks to get the jump back on Hamilton in the fight for the Championship.

I hate to say I told you so… No, I love to say it. For all winter I heard people criticise Jenson Button for ever daring to sign for McLaren as World Champion and putting his title and his reputation on the line against F1 golden boy Lewis Hamilton, claiming that he would be beaten by Hamilton and struggle to get close to beating him to race wins. People called it a mistake and that he would have been much better taking a cosy drive at a team were he would be team leader and under less pressure. But now four races in Button has won two and is leading the drivers championship and I for one am delighted because I was quick to defend his move at the time and truly believed that the new regulations would play right into his hands. Button is one of the most intelligent drivers in the sport and proved it once against in China in all sorts of awkward conditions that required quick but correct decisions. More so though it was his smooth driving ability that set him apart from his rivals … he was able to manage his tyres better than the others, able to adapt to the changing conditions better and it kept him at the head of the race when it mattered and gave him a huge victory which he described as his best ever.

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F1 is back. Yes, I know, it officially came back two weeks ago, but yesterday’s thrilling race was the real start to the season for me. Two weeks ago in Bahrain came across as little more than a glorified practice session whereas yesterday’s race was a proper race that had all kinds of drama. It doesn’t mean all is suddenly well again with F1 under its new rules and regs because it’ll take a few more races under different scenarios for us to properly judge – just like it would have been wrote to write it off completely after Bahrain without giving Australia a turn.

The rain helped but the circuit wasn’t wet all afternoon, yet the racing was excellent throughout with plenty of overtaking and wheel-to-wheel racing and I was delighted to see Jenson Button answer a lot of critics with a huge win for him personally. Throughout the winter people have called his decision to go to McLaren a mistake and that he’d struggle alongside Lewis Hamilton but Button struck back with a fine composed drive while in contrast his team-mate was losing his head at the most crucial time.

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The F1 season gets underway this weekend and so I have scrambled together a season preview that’ll run through the calendar, teams and drivers involved this season. With Michael Schumacher back, a Senna name in the sport again, a British World Champion joining an ex-British world Champion in an all-British team to go up against the all-German Mercedes team, we’re set for one of the great F1 seasons ever. Throw in Alonso debuting in Ferrari, Massa back from injury and a total of four World Champions (11 years worth of F1 Championships in all) on a 13-car grid with new rules including no-refuling and any predictions on what is going to happen (see my predictions later on) is purely speculating because anything could happen this year. Oh, and finally, the Canadian Grand Prix is back and I have tickets. Enjoy the guide and enjoy the season – I’ll be writing a lot about it throughout the year.

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I know I’m a little late commenting on it but I said my bit the other night on Facebook, just never had the chance to sit down and write something proper on here. What more can I really say. Congratulations to Ryan Giggs on winning the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award and while he is a wonderful player and a fine ambassador for the game, for loyalty to a single team and for his class as a professional footballer not often seen enough in some of his fellow pro’s, the fact remains that Giggs was not the best sports person of 2009. He wasn’t even the best footballer, heck, he wasn’t even the best footballer on his own team.

But it was a public vote and the Manchester United fans came out in droves to back their man. Deserving winner – F1 World Champion – Jenson Button had to settle for second place, joining Lewis Hamilton who finished in the same place last year after also winning the F1 crown. People will argue that Button only won because he was in the best car, but would Ryan Giggs have won if he didn’t play for the best team in Manchester United? He certainly wouldn’t have won any trophies if he had been a career man at, say, West Ham.

But it isn’t just about Jenson Button. There was at least half-a-dozen other athletes in the short-list that deserved the award ahead of 36-year old Ryan Giggs. I know I am not alone in thinking that this was a sympathy vote because Giggs is getting on in age, but if that is indeed the case, why didn’t he get some kind of life-time achievement award.

Anyway, well done to him, it wasn’t him that voted on the award and all he could do was collect it and try and feel deserving somehow.

The BBC Sports Personalities of the year shortlist has been drawn up and thanks to the powerful Interweb I have been unable to avoid finding out who is on it and therefore being drawn into questioning some of the choices. The list is as follows:

Jenson Button (F1 World Champion and bookies favorite)
Andrew Strauss (Cricket)
Tom Daley (diving)
Jessica Ennis (heptathlon)
David Haye (boxing)
Phillips Idowu (triple jump)
Beth Tweddle (gymnastics)
Mark Cavendish (Cycling)
Andy Murray (Tennis)
Ryan Giggs (Football)

It is hard to argue with the first five on the list, they are all World Champions and I don’t know enough about Beth Tweddle to argue her place amongs the shortlist. Jenson Button is a deserving favorite and thanks to the high profile sport of F1 he probably will win and I’m pleased for Mark Cavendish who had a fantastic year, but it is the Football choice that is making me ask questions.

Maybe the committee feel it unfair to have more than one person per sport but Brad Wiggins’ forth place finish in the 2009 Tour de France (the joint highest finish by a British rider ever) was a heck of a lot more impressive than Ryan Giggs’ football season. The old timer had a solid year but he wasn’t even his teams best player and certainly not the best footballer in Britain through 2009.

Boxing fans will call for Haye but the fact is he has had one or two fights in the whole year and while he became Heavyweight Champion of the World, and deservedly so, it was hardly against a magnificent opponent.

Cycling fans will argue who should be in between Cavendish and Wiggins: Was Cavs sprint victories all through the year more impressive than a 4th place finish in the toughest sporting event on the planet from Wiggins?

This shortlist always raises debate amongst sport fans and this year will likely be no different but I think it is indeed a safe bet that Button will walk away with the big prize and that the English Cricket team will win the team prize for their Ashes effort.

For the first time in the 60 year history of Formula One two drivers will drive for the same team as back-to-back World Champions with Jenson Button the 2009 World Champion joining countryman Lewis Hamilton the 2008 World Champion at McLaren for the 2010 season.

It is also the first time there have been back-to-back British World Champions since Graham Hill and Jackie Stewart in 1968 and 1969 respectively, and you have to go all the way back twenty years to 1989 to find the last time two World Champions drove for the same team with Senna winning it in 1988 and Prost having won it in 1985 and 1986.

The fact no World Champions have ever drove for the same team having won the title each in the two years previous says a lot about the mentality of a racing driver and a World Champion and his wish to be the main man at his team. Be it two drivers from the same team sharing titles over a two year period or another driver coming to join the previous years champion and taking the number 1 car. It hasn’t happened.

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