HAVING established himself as the most successful British racing driver in terms of wins, Lewis Hamilton will seek to outdo such greats as Sir Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill, Nigel Mansell and Mike Hawthorn by becoming the first Briton to retain the world title, writes Bob McKenzie.
The odds are in his favour, for Mercedes look likely to continue with the momentum they created last season when Hamilton overcame an array of problems to crush the resistance of teammate Nico Rosberg.
Their continuing partnership creates the stability that is key to success and is supplemented by the technical expertise at the Brackley-based team.
The big-money moves of Sebastian Vettel to Ferrari and Fernando Alonso to McLaren did not stimulate activity in other teams.
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Alonso had tired of Ferrari’s turmoil and troubles to the extent that he returned to McLaren, the team he almost broke in 2008 in their industrial espionage trial with the FIA.
Sweetness and light and strategic amnesia made his return possible although last season’s ousted man, Kevin Magnussen, is back for at least Australia as the Spaniard recuperates from a test-session crash in Barcelona.
Vettel has long been courted by Ferrari but, having seen Alonso’s career stall with the Italians, he may have to count the £30m-a-year salary rather than victories for solace.
Only four teams on the Albert Park grid in Melbourne on Sunday will have the same partnership, partly driven by the need to have drivers who pay to keep the team afloat.
Williams, who moved closer to old glories with a big improvement from ninth in 2013 to third in 2014, stick with Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa.
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Force India and Lotus have also stayed loyal to their drivers, though with money in mind.
The demise of Caterham highlighted the fragility of F1 finances for all but the few and Sauber have brought in two new drivers, Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson, to help pay the bills.
Toro Rosso, under the same ownership as Red Bull with billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, have an intriguing pairing. Max Verstappen, just 17, is so young it has caused unrest among many but as the son of former Benetton driver Jos, who partnered Michael Schumacher, he looks talented. He will have the son of another famous driver alongside him in Carlos Sainz Jr whose father won the world rally championship twice in the early 1990s.
There will be one team fewer but only because of a ferocious survival battle fought by the men behind Marussia. British driver Will Stevens will take one of their seats.
The one to watch apart from the usual suspects could be Kyvat as he comes to terms with the step up to Red Bull.
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This year’s new race is in Mexico.