Teamspeed.com - 2012 F1 season: you call it

Alright race fans,

Preseason testing is officially over, and the next time we see the F1s will be in Australia for the first round of the Championship. For 2012, there are many intriguing storylines to follow: the return of Raikkonen and Grosjean, the battle for between the new STR boys for the second Red Bull seat, Lewis' resurgence and Vettel's bid for a 3rd straight WDC.

So let's hear your picks! Will Vettel run away with the Championship, or will it go down to the wire? Ferrari hasn't looked good so far, but can they turn it around? Is McLaren really competitive, or do Red Bull have an ace up their sleeve?

Here are my picks for the battles I'll be following:

RBR: Vettel vs. Webber - Vettel takes this head-to-head battle, but not quite in the dominating fashion that he did last year. My heart hopes for Lewis, but my head tells me Vettel will be WDC in 2012. RBR takes 2nd in WCC

McLaren: Button vs. Hamilton - Hamilton was beaten by his teammate for the first time.. ever. He will not it happen again. Beats Button convincingly, but loses out on WDC because there isn't a #1/#2 driver policy at McLaren. The team from Woking easily takes the WCC

Ferrari: Alonso vs. Massa - Probably the easiest to predict. Massa doesn't even come close, and is sacked with a few races to go. Ferrari is generally uncompetitive all season, but Alonso manages to get a win. Ferrari finishes 5th in WCC, behind Mercedes

Mercedes AMG: Rosberg vs Schumacher - Rosberg wins both the Quali and points battles. Schumi finally admits that Father Time has caught up, and hangs up his driving boots at the end of 2012. The winner of the Force India battle gets his seat.

Lotus: Raikkonen vs Grosjean - I'm really excited for this, as Lotus seems to be making an earnest push up the grid. I expect Kimi to beat Grosjean on points, but for the frenchman to keep the qualifying battle close, and maybe even coming out on top. Final standing? 3rd in WCC.

Force India: di Resta vs. Hulkenburg - Probably the closest pairing on the grid. On talent alone, i'd probably go with Nico, but this battle can go either way. Expect these two to push each other to their very limits. Although the car looks very good, I doubt the team's ability to develop at the pace of the big boys. 6th in WCC.

STR: Ricciardo vs Vergne: Ricciardo was drawing Vettel comparisons when he blitzed the field (and pole time) during the 2010 Young Driver's test in Abu Dhabi. Vergne is everything Helmut Marko likes in a driver. He's fast, cocky, and has a bit of a mean streak. This should be close as well, but I am hoping for Ricciardo to come out on top. Although their development will be helped by RBR, I believe rookie mistakes and surprise performances by Sauber, Williams and Lotus allow them to finish no higher than 7th in WCC