F1: Hamilton tipped for Spain

The Formula 1 season reaches Europe this weekend and, as in recent races, there promises, once again, to be little between the teams in Sunday's eagerly-awaited Spanish Grand Prix. Of all the tracks on the GP calendar this is the one that the drivers are most familiar with because of the amount of winter testing held in Barcelona in recent years. It is likely to be more difficult to overtake than it was in Bahrain last time and qualifying could be vital; Red Bull's Mark Webber has grabbed pole for the last two years at the Circuit de Catalunya winning in 2010 although he could only finish fourth last year behind teammate Sebastian Vettel and the McLarens of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Our friends at BetVictor.com can't split Hamilton and Vettel in the betting for the Spanish Grand Prix at 3/1 with the 2009 winner Jenson Button at 4s, Kimi Raikkonen, successful in 2008 & 2005, at 8s and Fernando Alonso victorious in 2006 at 10/1. At first glance the 14/1 currently available for Webber looks too big given his back-to-back poles in Barcelona and he could be the early value before the teams head into the Spanish sun later in the week. Hamilton is the only driver in the top six in the betting yet to taste success in Spain and he was at pains to say recently what a strange start to the season it had been with four different winners, and he found it difficult to predict who would come out on top this weekend. Many of the drivers suggested that if a car goes well in Catalunya it will go well for the rest of the season and you sense that this could be a pivotal weekend in the destiny of the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships. Red Bull have had the upper hand in the last couple of years in Spain and this dominance was mirrored in the end of season classifications; there is a quiet confidence behind the Lotus who believe they have already been competitive in warm conditions and are looking forward to the challenge in Spain. The weather looks set fair for the weekend and dual winner Raikkonen and team-mate Romain Grosjean (14/1) could be the ones to upset the recent Red Bull/McLaren dominance in Barcelona. BetVictor.com have head-to-head betting for each team this weekend and Hamilton over Button at 4/6 and Michael Schumacher over Nico Rosberg at 6/5 are two that might be of interest. All head-to-head markets can be found HERE. Four races and four different winners to date in F1 but the European F1 season is upon us. Ten points currently cover the first five in the drivers' standings but will normal service be resumed in Spain and the Red Bulls & McLarens take control of the Drivers' standings? Or will the Gran Premio De Espana see a shift in the balance of power in Formula 1? It promises to be a fascinating weekend and our friends at BetVictor.com have everything covered…