Formula One 
/ James Frankland / 08 October 2011 / Leave a Comment 
Jenson Button is in good form
"There’s also value to be had in home favourite Kamui Kobayashi. Flashback to 2010 and you’ll recall the Japanese star bullying his way into the points with a series of gutsy overtakes, having started 14th."
James Frankland was up with the larks this morning to watch Japanese Grand Prix qualifying - having digested that (and his Weetabix) here's his assessment of the betting
The fact that qualifying proved to be any kind of contest at all was just the wake-up call I and many more millions, bleary-eyed and half-asleep, watching the session at 6am this morning needed.
Expecting a Red Bull march to the front of the grid, instead we got a titanic scrap between the blue cars from Milton Keynes and Woking's silver McLarens, with in-form man Jenson Button losing out to world champion-elect Sebastian Vettel by the narrowest of margins, just 0.009s.
Pole position could so easily have been Lewis Hamilton's, just the sort of tonic he needs after a difficult run of races, but he was let out of the garage just too late to start a final flying run and had to settle for third, alongside his sparring partner of recent weeks, Felipe Massa. The run to the first corner will be very interesting to watch tomorrow...
Vettel and Button are the only two drivers still contesting the world championship, but to even call it a contest is to vastly underrate the job the 24-year old German has done. If you're unaware of the maths, such is Vettel's lead that he only needs one point from the remaining five races to win his second consecutive title.
Button can only steal the crown if he wins all five remaining races, and then only if Vettel fails to finish each race. Given that Sebastian has finished every race in either first or second position, barring a fourth in mixed conditions in Germany, the odds are heavily stacked towards the 2011 world champion being crowned tomorrow.
Vettel's price of [1.76] reflect his favourite status, but Button's [4.9] represents strong value for the sport's current 'best of the rest' and I'd give him some consideration for tomorrow's race.
The track should suit the Red Bull, but Button has a knack of finding himself near the leader towards the end of the race - witness Singapore, where but for the duelling Williams pair Button would have had a clean run at Vettel over the last few laps, and finished less than two seconds behind him.
At the other end of the grid, Mercedes' Nico Rosberg finds himself in the unfamiliar environs of 23rd, having suffered with hydraulic problems during qualifying. You can bank on the team fixing these issues for the race and with a quick car underneath him Nico is a good shout for a points finish at [1.62].
There's also value to be had in home favourite Kamui Kobayashi. Flashback to 2010 and you'll recall the Japanese star bullying his way into the points with a series of gutsy overtakes, having started 14th. This year Kamui is 10th and so just has to maintain that position in order to score, so points at [1.85] are worth considering.
Recommended Bets
Sebastian Vettel to win @ [1.76]
Jenson Button to finish on the podium @ [1.67]
Nico Rosberg to score points @ [1.68]
The Force India cars both grabbed vital points at Singapore, but will they be able to repeat the feat at this weekend's Japanese GP? James Boswell thinks they might just manage it....
Ralph Ellis looks forward to Sunday's big race where he expects Sebastian Vettel to seal a second world title. However, don't write off his under-rated team-mate......
Sebastian Vettel won the Singapore Grand Prix from pole position and is the new World Champ, albeit not mathematically....
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