IT’S THE ASCENT OF A CHAMPION

Coulthard nose Russell is in with a sniff in his speedy Silver Arrow

- BY DANIEL MOXON

THE new Formula One season is so close you can almost smell it.

But even after nine days of preseason testing across sessions in Barcelona and Bahrain, it’s still tough to predict what the balance of power will look like in this new era.

So tough that SMELLING the drivers is the only method David Coulthard (below) trusts to try to figure out who will start on top.

“It’s all about the pheromones - you have to sniff them,” the 13-time F1 race winner said, with a smirk.

“You can smell the success, and you can definitely smell the fear.”

The only thing the Scot can say for sure is: “There’s going to be a winner and there’s going to be a loser.

“There will be bouncebacks and comebacks - McLaren a few years ago were last on the grid in Bahrain at the opening race but now they're back-to-back world champions.

“Things move quickly in this sport, so I'm looking forward to seeing who is the fastest draw when it comes to the first race, in Melbourne.”