The 2004 Formula One season was a case of deja-schu, with Michael Schumacher winning 13 of the 18 races and winning an unprecedented seventh world championship. 

His closest competitor was Ferrari teammate Rubens Barrichello, making it a perfect season for the Italian team, who themselves won the Constructors title scoring more than double the points of the BAR team, who finished second.

Although the season was one dominated by Schumacher and Ferrari, it was also one to remember for British fans, and one man in particular - Jenson Button. The BAR driver scored his first podium in the second race of the season and became a regular face amongst the champagne celebrations in races to follow, visiting the podium no fewer than ten times out of the 18 races.

Despite the British success of the 2004 season, the only real saving grace was the fact that the race calendar included two brand new venues in Bahrain and China, which gave the fans something new to talk about.

The Bahrain grand prix, which was the third race of the season, is located in Sakhir, which is south to the capital Manama.  The Bahrainis transformed an area of sandy desert into a first class $150 million racing venue in less than two years in order to host the very first Formula One Grand Prix in the Middle East.  In addition to the 5.4km main circuit, the venue consists of a 2.4km inner track, 3.4km outer track, a 2.5km oval, and a 1.2km drag track, meaning Bahrain can expect to host many more racing events in years to come.

China also hosted their inaugural grand prix in the city of Shanghai, which held the 15th race of the 18-race season.  The Chinese were in for a treat, with the race being one of the last of the season, it not only gave the circuit owners time to complete circuit construction, but, most importantly, being one of the last of the year, it could be a potential championship decider.  The latter proved to be a Chinese takeaway, as with thanks to Schumacher and Ferrari’s success, both titles had been won before the oriental grand prix.  Despite this disappointment, the Chinese grand prix was a runaway success, especially for sponsors who grasped the opportunity to advertise their products to the land of 1.3 billion people.  There is no doubt that Formula One will visit China for many years to come.

Nonetheless, despite last year’s historical season, it was, in many ways, one to forget.

So can the 2005 season prove to be much better than last year? Or will fans watch another procession that was 2004?

After a dull 2002 season the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile), Formula One’s governing body, chose to shake up the rules to spice things up in 2003, which proved to be a huge success. This success however failed to carry on in 2004, so just like 2003, the FIA have yet again tweaked the rules of the sport to restore F1 to its former glory.

Some of the rule changes are extensions of those introduced for the 2004 season but some are brand new in the hope to change F1 for the better. In 2005 engines must last for two complete race weekends (unlike the one in 2004) and the engine capacity will then be cut from 3.0 litre V10s to 2.4 litre V8s in 2006. If a driver changes an engine then a 10-place deficit on the grid will be their punishment. Other changes to the car include less downforce therefore less grip through corners, which will inevitably cut speeds, and subsequently, improve safety.  Teams will also be limited to one set of tyres for qualifying and the race, meaning tyre rivals Bridgestone and Michelin will have to come up with more competitive and durable tyres than ever before.

The most significant rule change for the 2005 season is the qualifying format. The new system will involve a familiar single-lap qualifying session on Saturday afternoon, with cars running on low fuel levels for the fastest possible lap, before a second session on Sunday morning.

The starting grid will be decided by aggregate times and teams will not be allowed to refuel or alter the setup of cars between the second session and the race. This new qualifying format was introduced unintentionally during the 2004 Japanese grand prix, after qualifying on Saturday was cancelled due to severe weather, and moved to Sunday morning.  This spontaneous change of format was a success and will now carry on into the 2005 season.

Another new addition to the 2005 season is yet another grand prix venue.  Turkey will host a round of the new season, the most packed schedule in the sports history, which is bursting with 19 races.  The Turkish race, which is to be held in Istanbul, has been scheduled to take place at the end of August.  This should be a race to watch, going by the successes of the new tracks in Bahrain and China lat year.

The most important changes though come from the drivers themselves. Here’s a rundown of who’s going where in 2005. 

It’s no change at Ferrari, Michael Schumacher will stay on as driver number one, totaling a decade with the team.  Will he prove to be unstoppable in his quest for his fifth consecutive, eighth in total, drivers world championship or will that oh so familiar routine become a thing of the past?  Rubens Barrichello remains as Schumacher’s loyal number two, and will hope to prove he can do more than the two wins he claimed in 2004.  Ferrari will be determined to remain unbeaten with their strongest package remaining in tact for yet another season.

McLaren announced throughout 2004 that Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya, who drove for Williams last season, will be driving for them in 2005. Can Monty make an impact on the team which struggled throughout the majority of last season, or will it prove to be a move to regret? Finn Kimi Raikkonen remains with the team and will have to capitalise on his one win in 2004 if he is to prove himself. But with Montoya as a teammate, it will be a feat like never before. The duo gave the F1 world a dose of what to expect in 2005 during the 2004 season finale in Brazil, in what was a cat and mouse chase to the finish line, which saw Montoya on the top step of the podium, and claim his only win of the season.  With these two racing together as teammates in 2005, expect tempers and fireworks to flare. 

It’s all change at Williams. The team were hoping to gain the services of Brit Jenson Button, who made his debut with the team in 2000. But his future was decided in BAR's favour following a ruling by Formula One's Contract Recognition Board.  As Button’s contract with the BAR team had not expired, the move was judged illegal, meaning he has to complete his current BAR contract before signing on the dotted line with Williams once again.  The seat has been taken by German Nick Heidfeld, who did well at Jordan last year, although his performances seemed to go un-noticed.

Mark Webber will be joining the Williams team from the now deceased Jaguar team, the Australian will hope to make a huge impact on his first outing for the team at his home grand prix in Melbourne.  Webber proved he’s got what it takes to be a star of the future by challenging the likes of Schumacher and Montoya at the beginning of the 2004 season by claiming 2nd on the grid for the Malaysian grand prix in a car which struggled throughout the season.  Let’s hope the team can offer him a car in which he can show his full potential which he has been unable to show in the past.

The Renault team have kept Spaniard Fernando Alonso, who will embark on a third successive season with the team. Despite his success in 2003 he failed to win a race in 2004, nevertheless he claims “I did not get a race win (in 2004), but as a driver, I matured. We scored more points, finished higher in the championship and I had the feeling I had put in a more complete season.” He will be hoping to rise to the challenge and prove himself against new teammate, Giancarlo Fisichella. The Italian, who drove for the Sauber team last year, and the Jordan team in 2003, will be hoping to shine by returning to the team he drove for (then the Benetton team before its re-branding to Renault) from 1998 to 2001. This move was made possible mainly due to a rift in the latter part of the 2004 season between team boss Flavio Briatore and driver Jarno Trulli, and the subsequent demise of the Italian driver from the team.  This drive will prove to be the crunch point for Fisichella as to whether he is good enough to become a Ferrari driver of the future, which he has always dreamed of.  He will therefore need more than a few point finishes to make his voice heard, and with the Renault team, as we have seen in the past, he will be more than capable of winning a few too. 

With thanks to a little help from the Contract Recognition Board, BAR will have Jenson Button driving for them in 2005.  With 10 podiums in 2004, that first win can only be around the corner for the Brit, which he has openly admitted by saying Ferrari and Schumacher aren’t invincible.  “There's no way Michael is on a different level, he is not unbeatable”, he said in a recent interview.  With this psychological boost from the man himself, and if the BAR team are just as competitive as last year, this dream could soon become a reality. The team have also retained Takuma Sato, who proved himself to the world in a surprisingly successful season in 2004, which seemed extremely unlikely, considering his previous haphazard seasons.  His debut in 2002 with Jordan saw him off the track more often than on it, and made the audience believe he felt the need to crash at every racetrack at one time or another.  This reckless side of Sato was proven to be a one season wonder when he replaced Jacques Villeneuve in the Japanese grand prix, the 2003 season finale, finishing 6th and scoring 3 points from 13th on the starting grid.  Things can only get better for the young Japanese driver.

The only thing which may hamper the BAR team in their 2005 efforts is the fact that team principal David Richards has stepped down, due to Honda buying a 45 per-cent share of the team.  Nick Fry will now pick up from where Richards left off, but will a shake-up like this at the sharp end of the team have an affect on the teams 2005 campaign? In a recent survey, one fan commented “BAR are stupid to replace Richards who has been responsible for their recent successes, without him the team will be going backwards and not forwards” another simply commented “If it isn’t broken, why fix it?” Fry will be the third principal of the team in their seven-year history, the recently departed Richards and Craig Pollock, the man who managed the team from their birth in 1999, being the other two.   

Felipe Massa will continue to drive for the Sauber team in 2005. He will be looking for a better season than 2004, which saw him in the shadows of team-mate Fisichella.  If winter testing is anything to go by, the Brazilian is certainly proving himself against the others by consistently being near to the top of the time sheet, and also beating his closest rival by three quarters of a second on one occasion. But if he thinks he will have it easy in 2005, even with his recent success, he needs to think again, as former world champion Jacques Villeneuve will be joining the team. The 1997 world champion, who took a sabbatical from the sport last year, will be hoping to impress and prove he has lost none of his skill and aggression from previous seasons. The Canadian will be one to stir things up in 2005.

New faces dominate the Toyota team. Ralf Schumacher joins the team after a six-year spell at Williams. The German joins the team after missing most of the 2004 season due to his 200mph crash in the American grand prix, in which he fractured his back in two places. Ralf will certainly have to drive the wheels off his Toyota to prove himself in 2005, which many see as a move to regret, but Schumacher Junior claims the move is for the better. In an interview, the German said: “My main target is to be world champion, and now I have a perfect opportunity with a young team with all the possibilities regarding this team. “They (Toyota) have a different way of approaching drivers and people here which I only see as a good way. Williams just had a different way.”

Italian Jarno Trulli joins the team after being replaced in the closing races of the 2004 season at the Renault team by Villeneuve. Trulli, who broke Schumacher’s run of race victories during 2004 at the Monaco grand prix, will need to prove his old team they were wrong to replace him by beating them at there at their own game, which won’t be easy. 

The small Minardi team have signed F1 newcomer Christijan Albers.  The team, who have traditionally over the years introduced fresh faces into the F1 world, was favoured by the Dutchman over the Jordan team.  Albers raced in the DTM series in 2004 where he finished third in the championship.  He will have to raise his game immensely if he is to cope with the transition to F1 racing. Their second driver is Patrick Freisacher, who impressed in Formula 3000 with a fifth place championship finish in 2004.

The Jordan team will count themselves lucky when they arrive in Australia for the new season, as after Ford pulled out of the sport at the end of 2004, the team had to look for new engines and secured a deal with Toyota just in time. The recent takeover by the Midland group means this will be the final season with the team carrying the 'Jordan' name, with the team being re-named 'Midland F1' in time for 2006. The team have taken a risk in signing two rookie drivers, Indian Narain Karthikeyan, the self titled 'Fastest Indian in the World' is the first Indian to race in F1, and is a breath of fresh air in the paddock. Tiago Monteiro from Portugal will take the second seat.

At the end of the 2004 season, Jaguar announced it was to quit the sport after its parent company, Ford, put the team up for sale, which could have resulted in a nine team affair in 2005.  However, drinks manufacturer, Red Bull, bought the team towards the end of the year and will be a new addition to the grid in 2005.  Scotsman David Coulthard has benefited from these events and also thrown a lifeline, after the team offered him a drive for the new season.  Coulthard, who was replaced by Montoya at McLaren after being with the British team since 1996, will face a new challenge in 2005.  Coulthard will face a new feat that he has not experienced before in his F1 career – racing for a mid field team, since he has only driven for Williams and McLaren, which are, as we know, winners.  However, he should not be too disheartened by his new driver role, since he would have been without a drive altogether had it not been for the energy drink team.  The team recently announced that 2004 driver Christian Klein will again be racing for the team, for the first race in Australia at least, although his seat is likely to be shared with Italian up and comer Vitantonio Liuzzi, who was the runaway Formula 3000 champion last year.

So the ball is rolling for the 2005 season, questions, as always, are going to be raised. Can Button win his first Grand Prix? Will Schumacher win yet another championship? How will the new drivers fare in their new teams? Will Turkey prove to be a success or just plain foul?  But most importantly will 2005 be a season to remember? All these question will remain unanswered at least until the lights go out in Melbourne at the start of the 2005 season in just a weeks time!