Button excited by new season

The wait for the new Formula One season is nearly over.

Media, teams, drivers and fans alike have all been counting down the 70 odd days since the last Grand Prix in Brazil and this weekend, the 20-race 2012 F1 season begins in Australia.

As has been well documented, the winter testing has thrown up many question but very few answers.

We believe Lotus and Mercedes may well have closed the gap to the usual contenders in the form of Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari, but we do not know how much, while Force India and Williams have also looked to have made positive strides this winter.

Red Bull and McLaren appear to be evenly matched, but have they shown the real performance available to their new cars, or have they been holding something back in reserve? Our guess would be yes of course, but just how much?

Then there are Ferrari who gave up mid-way through 2011 to concentrate on their 2012 car, only to find they are no further forward and could in fact have dropped even further behind with their exhaust design.

We the fans want answers and so do the drivers! None more so than McLaren driver Jenson Button who can't wait to get out on track and discover the early season 'pecking order'.

'You always want more laps and more time in the car, but, unlike last year, we've had a very solid start to our pre-season,' Button told Sky Sports.

'It's been very difficult to read pace over the winter because a lot of teams have been playing their cards close to their chests: I think it's going to be extremely close, and I can't wait to find out where we sit in the pecking order.'

McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh added: 'Make no mistake, this will be a long, arduous and difficult campaign, and I'm naturally reluctant to stick my neck out and make any predictions, but my greatest hope is that we go to Australia and put on a world-beating show to demonstrate to the world that Formula 1 is back, and back with a bang!'