Ferrari head to South Korea knowing exactly what to do to add another title to their trophy cabinet – the only thing they’re lacking is any knowledge of whether they’ll be able to do it.

For the Maranello masters, the inaugraul Korean grand prix will throw up more answers than bad fish in a crowded restaurant. If Fernando Alonso can take the win, the title is well and truly up for grabs – but on the flipside, a Red Bull performance anything like they showed at Japan will only energise their march towards a first ever drivers title. Add in a circuit that has never seen a tyre turned, and the defining race of the season is on the way.

You might say that experience will serve Ferrari better – what with 15 drivers titles to the team’s name, and Fernando Alonso holding two from an error-free time elsewhere at Renault – but if the Red Bulls can be a second ahead of the field, the championship is theirs. But if the car isn’t so far ahead, Mark Webber, and especially Sebastian Vettel have shown that they’ve hardly had a traditionally consistent “championship year”; whilst Vettel’s mistakes have been high profile, Webber’s overexcited showing at Australia demonstrated that he too has mistakes in him when the pressure is truly on.

For Fernando Alonso, beating Webber is the minimum, and Vettel the maximum. McLaren have realistically dropped out of contention in the past few races, and so long as Robert Kubica doesn’t get the Renault into a position it frankly shouldn’t be in, it will once again be a battle between the three for the podium places. Teammate Felipe Massa will be asked to play the role of backup, and has a lot to make up after a dreadful weekend in Japan. If he can find a piece of clear track and a bit of pace then expect a “creative” strategy to interfere with the Red Bulls - all of which is imperative of him being quick enough to escape the drivers who’d be happy to bang wheels with an underachieving Ferrari.

We haven’t seen enough of the Felipe that deserved to win the title in 2008 since he effectively had a bullet through his head last year, but if there was ever any time for a one-off flashback, it is now. If Alonso wants to get his hands on the title, then beating Webber is a must. Unless Sebastian Vettel fancies repeating his showing at Turkey, the teammate whose support he needs will be wearing similar colours. But as with all the variables this weekend, whether this will actually happen is a mystery to us all…

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