After a much-anticipated wait, the new F1 season gets underway this weekend.

Sunday will see the racers embark on the new season as they take to the track in Melbourne, Australia.

Following a close and engrossing title race last season, it comes as no surprise that Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel are expected to battle it out at the front of the grid again this year.

The latter was on a four-year F1 title run from 2010 to 2013 before Hamilton topped the standings for the first time in five years in 2014.

Since then, the Brit hasn’t finished below second place, winning the title in two of his next three seasons, including last year.

However, Vettel, who finished second last season, 46 points adrift of Hamilton in top spot, will be hoping to regain the crown he lost five years ago come the end of this campaign.

Nevertheless, former F1 ace Mark Webber has claimed that Hamilton has the psychological edge over the German, a vital asset that could see him take the title once more:

"Every now and then we have these rash calls, and I mean the decision process rather than verbally," Webber told the Daily Mail.

"You would think over time they would get better but we saw a couple last year. Does Lewis know how to spar at him [Vettel] with a couple of little jabs and get him going? Then maybe as well. Lewis is up for that."

Webber also claimed that Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas, who replaced Nico Rosberg at the start of 2017, could pose more of a problem for the Brit with a year's experience at the constructors' champions under his belt.

"It was clearly a tighter battle between Lewis and Nico," Webber added. "Valtteri will be better this year. Whether it is enough to take a championship to Lewis we will see.

"Last year was a pretty awesome season. The battle between Lewis and Seb and a couple of cameos from the Red Bull boys. If we can have that dialled up another five or ten per cent it will be a classic."