The question on every F1 fans' mind was not "who will win the Korean GP", but will the Korean GP actually make it over the starting line?"
With all the construction delays and problems with the course there was a very real danger of F1 facing its first cancellation in decades.
But it's going ahead! The Koreans, through old fashioned hard work, have pulled it off and saved themselves a huge loss of face, the race organisers KAVO - the Korean Auto Valley Operation - have managed to deliver the anxiously awaited all-new motor-racing facility; The Korean International Circuit (KIC), and it looks like a cracker!
There is a huge straight between the second and third bends, which will favour the accelerators as they punch their engines, but it's not a drag race and after a shorter stretch, between corners 3 and 4 there are twists and turns all the way to the finish line. The architect Hermann Tilke and the design team have been inventive enough to recreate favorite corner sequences of more traditional Formula One circuits, such as Silverstone's Becketts complex, so it manages to be both familiar and foreign.
And just for the number crunchers out there, there are 15 twists before the end of the lap!
It's not quite a virgin lap, ex-Hispania racer Karun Chandhok ragged a Red Bull round it back in September and the course was passed and Chandhok said, it's pretty cool to drive and the layout is quite interesting. The first bit of the lap is mega-long straights, and then from turn seven onwards it's feisty, fast-flying stuff."
But a cautionary note to all the teams; new circuits are inevitably dirty on their first day in action, but things could be particularly treacherous in Korea as the top layer was only recently laid.
SBOBET lets you bet on who will be the first driver to retire, Hamilton might be worth a punt at 33/1 (he may push it too hard and pay the price), but there is also Di Gassi at 10/1 and Alonso at 40/1.
Maybe experience will play the biggest role at the weekend, and if it does you can clean up with +10,000 on Michael Schumaker or Rubens Barrichello @ +12500 both with William Hill.
This new track could result in a shock exit from one of the favourites so if you fancy spinning some money out of thin air, take a look at the lines on some of the names further down the grid. The biggest odds are on Lucas di Grassi, Bruno Senna and Sakon Yamamoto who are all at +250,000 - they're what I would call a loose change bet (only worth it to stop the coins rubbing a hole in your pocket) but this track could throw up a real surprise.
The course has hard braking zones, where feet will be stamped hard on the deck and long straights deliberately placed to encourage overtaking, when with the accelerator squished to the floor to see what these engines really can do, plus it has fast combinations of corners and sinuous sections.
So that's breaking, accelerating and steering - all boxes ticked basically.
For the teams, McLaren thinks it will thrive in the first sector, with their heavier punching engines performing well, but it's Red Bull who could rue its relative lack of straight-line speed, leaving it to make up ground in middle of the track.
The man with the most to gain form clinching pole is Lewis Hamilton, he's languishing 28 points behind, and has left himself a small mountain to traverse, so he really needs maximum points this weekend to keep his title dreams alive for the last two races.
He's offered at +450 with certainly worth a punt.
It's worth noting that the barriers are surprisingly close to the track in some places, with less spacious run-off areas (unlike certain tracks which shall remain nameless) meaning that mistakes will actually be punished.
Which again suggests a "lesser" name stepping up onto the podium.
No one can clinch the title at Yeongam, BUT don't forget that it is still possible for one of the 'big five' to be mathematically ruled out this weekend.
Expect a qualifier ruled by safe and steady performances, here fortune really will favour the brave (not the foolhardy).
Prediction; Hamilton to qualify fastest.
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