The 2010 season will feature a bunch of new teams, more than any one season has had in a long time. The last season sits pretty in the mind, reminding us that a debutant team can win Championships and is competitive from the word ‘Go’. This year, we will have a tighter grid, with the difference between teams technologically is negligible. The budget cap regulations will also give some teams the advantage and in end we will surely be treated to some smoking wheel to wheel action!

Let’s take a look at the new teams for the 2010 season.

Mercedes GP

The hottest new entrant on the grid is the comeback kid, Mercedes GP. After a 55 year absence from the Formula 1 racing circuit, Mercedes took over Brawn GP’s 75.1% stake and renamed it to Mercedes GP. Mercedes has been supplying engines to teams, and also has a minority stake in McLaren, but this is the first time since 1955 that Mercedes has pitted it own team. Nico Rosberg and seven-time champion Michael Schumacher will be in the driver’s seat whilst Ross Brawn will remain as the Team Principal. The team facility is based in Brackley, UK.

Lotus F1 Racing

Proton, who owns Lotus Cars, is a part of the group which jointly owns the Lotus F1 Racing, and thus the name. Lotus F1 Racing is a completely new team run by 1Malaysia F1 Team Sdn. Bhd., a partnership between the Malaysian Government and a group of Malaysian entrepreneurs such as Proton (who owns Lotus Car), Sepang International Circuit (SIC), AirAsia, Naza Motors, the Motorsports Association of Malaysia and Automobile Association of Malaysia. The team is currently based in Norfolk at the Racing Technology Norfolk Ltd and in future will be shifted to a new facility at the Sepang International Circuit. Tony Fernandes will head the team whilst Mike Gascoyne will lead the technical side as a Technical Chief. Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen will drive for Lotus F1 Racing. Technically strong, this team will be one of the teams to watch out for in the coming season.

Campos Meta

Campos Meta is the new Spanish Team led by the ex-Formula One driver Adrian Campos. Apart from the experience as a driver, Campos also has had good success as a Team Manager in junior formulae. The Team is based out of Madrid, Spain and runs a technical centre in Valencia. Meta Image, a Madrid based sports agency also owns a stake in the team. Running on a Cosworth powered motor, this car is set to deliver as required. As of now, only Bruno Senna, nephew to the legend Aryton Senna as been confirmed as one of the drivers.

Virgin

Owned by Richard Branson, Virgin Racing has the backup needed to run successfully and deliver a competitive performance. Manor Racing, which enjoyed huge success in junior formulae will now promote itself to the top of the league Formula One. Wirth Research Limited designed, tested and refined the car entirely digitally under the leadership of Nick Wirth. The team will be based in Sheffield/Bicester, UK. Alex Tai will head the team as the Team Principal and Lucas Di Grassi and Timo Glock will be in the cockpit.

US F1 Team

The US F1 team is one of the new entrants, and is based out of North Carolina, USA. Former F1 technical Director Ken Anderson and partner Peter Windsor, an ex-Williams team manager created this team. The team enjoys facilities in Northern Spain and is backed by high-rollers like YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley. Like Campos, US F1 Team will also run on a Cosworth powerplant. There are no confirmed drivers as yet, but the team will be announcing them quite soon.