The 2012 season starts here – the first test at the Circuito de Jerez in Spain which promises to be sunny. On the first day, Mark Webber, Jenson Button and Felipe Massa have the honour of taking their respective 2012 cars out on track for their first serious outings. In all, eleven of the twelve teams will be present, with only Marussia absent…

From a publicity point of view, I’m not sure if it’s brave or mad to launch a new car the same day as Ferrari but that’s precisely what Sahara Force India did. However, fortune was on their side and while Ferrari found themselves snowed in and having to scale back their big day, Force India became the first team to hit the track for a shakedown ahead of the first test. But will their luck continue in 2012 to see them maintain their steady climb up the standings?

Hot on the heels of McLaren comes the launch of Ferrari’s F2012; although they’ll be hoping the reverse is true when they hit the track. Given the team’s high standards, last year was a disappointing campaign and therefore Ferrari have taken an aggressive approach to designing this year’s charger with much of the car revised. However, with accusations that it is ugly, the pressure is on for the F2012 to justify its looks.

It’s been a week since Caterham revealed their 2012 challenger but now the car launches start coming thick and fast ahead of the first test at Jerez next week. First up: McLaren’s MP4-27. Despite subdued form on the test track ahead of the season, last year’s car was there but not quite there as they repeatedly found themselves chasing after Sebastian Vettel. However, what does 2012 have in store for the team as they look to cross that gap between themselves and Red Bull?

It was inevitable that the first images of Caterham’s 2012 racer would be in the public domain before F1 Racing’s attempt at an exclusive launch. Still, the CT01’s thunder was not lost and the nose in particular looks set to be the main topic of conversation for at least a week when McLaren’s challenger is the next to be revealed. However, what does 2012 have in store for the team formerly known as Team Lotus formerly known as Lotus Racing?

There’s not too long to wait until the start of the 2012 Formula One season but before that, I’d like to persuade you to get your thinking cap on, fire up that crystal ball and take part in Viva F1’s Mega Prediction Competition.

If you believed the rumours, just three months ago Williams were finalising a deal with former World Champion, Kimi Raikonnen. Three months later, and with the Finn now firmly ensconced at Lotus, it’s Bruno Senna who will partner Pastor Maldonado. How the mighty seem to have fallen.

For the last couple of years I’ve been playing a very enjoyable multi-motorsports prediction game over at Too Much Racing. The game is different from many prediction games in that you select drivers from the various series racing that weekend; part of the fun is in deciding whether to choose drivers from every series competing that week or choosing from just 2 or 3 of them, it’s the ultimate test of strategy.