FAST AND FURIOUS

All eyes focused on Melbourne as rivals bid to snatch Lando's crown

- GEORGE RUSSELL

The bookies' favourite, Russell had a swagger about him in preseason. He proved last year that he is quick and consistent enough to deliver almost every weekend for Mercedes. And, if the car and engine are as good as the rumours say, then he will be the man to beat.Russell and boss Toto Wolff spent much of preseason hyping up others, both singing the praises of Red Bull and their new engines. But Wolff has now admitted "we can compete at the front" after years of Mercedes underperformance in the last rule set.

As the senior driver, Russell will be the one expected to deliver. Mercedes have high hopes for teenager Kimi Antonelli who showed some brilliance in his debut season. But the consistency isn't there yet, and it would be galling for Russell if he were to be challenged by his teammate.

LANDO NORRIS

The defending champion, though Norris has not had much of the spotlight in preseason amid all the hype surrounding fellow Brit Russell. There will surely no longer be any questioning his mental strength, after he kept his cool amid intense pressure from the late-charging Max Verstappen in the final weeks of last season. What is unclear right now is the strength of his McLaren team in this new era.

Back-to-back constructors' titles in the two most recent seasons mean nothing, given the scale of the regulation changes, and there have been suggestions that they might be starting the new year on the back foot.