There are some good things about the rule changes that are happening for the 2009 Formula One season.  With the lack of winglets, restrictive aerodynamics, KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) and slick tires (if you’re European then it’s “tyres”), cars are becoming more dependant on drivers than the combination of both driver and manufacturer.  With this shift, “luck” now plays a much bigger part.  Agreed, that the engines and chassis are still made by their respective manufacturers but with almost all the cars sharing similar characteristics I think that the season will be unpredictable.  The favorites are no longer with the manufacturer but with the drivers.  This means that Kimi, Louis, Massa and Alonso are the main favorites but I also predict that we will see some lower teams standing on the podium more often throughout the season, causing havoc on the point system.  No longer will it be prestigious to race for Ferrari or McLaren or even BMW.  Instead the privateer teams or lower manufacturer teams will be just as prestigious and will be not as meaningful to move up in the ranks of the F1 grid.  I’m excited for the season to start but I’m also nervous for the future of Formula One.  There’s only one way to find out and we will see after the beginning of the season starts.