2012 Season Preview - Ferrari

The top 3, a place everyone in Formula One wants to be and yet when you get there, you are no longer satisfied and you want to be number one.

We start our look at the top 3 with Italian giants Ferrari, a team with such a rich history they get a special deal just for turning up. This, of course is somewhat annoying to the rest of the teams, even though they don't mention it so much.

Ferrari have been under performing since Kimi Raikkonen's championship year and Felipe Massa's near miss. Their cars just haven't been on the pace with numerous glaring errors in their design. We saw Alonso storm into the lead on a few occasions, only to be hampered through no fault of his own. Let me explain, he made some amazing starts and overtakes in 2011 but as soon as he moved onto the harder compound tyre, he started to go almost backwards. There was also the front wing debacle, watching Felipe Massa drive around circuits during practice sessions was almost painful sometimes, his front wing wobbling like it was on a pogo stick. This was their attempt to copy the Red Bull flexible front wing with no success.

Italy is screaming out for success in Formula One, you'd be hard pressed to find a more passionate set of fans than the Tifosi at Monza. Can Ferrari deliver what they are hoping for? Well the short answer is no in my opinion. They will race with the same two driers Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa for the 3rd season running. Massa Will be required to lift his game considerably this season as its the final year of his contract, he's been told in no uncertain terms that another season like last year, without any podiums will not be acceptable. I still believe that he has the ability, last season he spent too much time tangling with Lewis Hamilton. Fernando Alonso won at Silverstone last season, that was his only win of the year, but he did an incredible job staying up close and personal to the leaders in an inferior car. Alonso's win at Silverstone was due to the ban on off throttle blown diffusers. For that race only it was clear to see that this was Ferrari's main issue, had they designed this technology well, they would have challenged in 2011.

What can the Tifosi expect from their heroes in 2012? I am expecting the top 3 to be much closer this season but unfortunately for the prancing horse supporters, I still believe Red Bull and McLaren will be number one and two. Ferrari will be in a battle with Mercedes for 3rd place. It's a battle that they will win, I think that it'll be down to a couple of wins for Alonso. This will be the difference between the two teams. The complete ban on off throttle blown diffusers won't really make a difference to Ferrari this season as everyone starts from a clean sheet. Massa will hopefully get back into shape this season, I'm just concerned that it won't be enough to keep his drive in 2013.

2011 Position - 3rd
2012 Predicted Position - 3rd

Conclusion - another season staring at the back of Red Bull and McLaren cars. They are likely to get more podiums this season and a couple of wins for Alonso is not out of the question. Massa will hopefully have a better season, he is still a top driver but he hasn't had the rub of the green recently. I've already said in my other previews that the top will be a lot closer this season, I'll say it again as I believe the points difference will be minimal and Ferrari will still be in the hunt going into the last few races.