Timo Glock says the Virgin team, now known as Marussia, is making progress. (Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

The erstwhile Virgin team adopts the Marussia identity this year, and that change reflects a fresh approach as a new design team takes over from the long departed Nick Wirth. There’s also a new base, and it won’t be easy for the small team to deal with the changes. But in theory, the car should be better, given that a wind tunnel has been used in its gestation! Timo Glock stays on, joined by Charles Pic, the third rookie GP2 graduate the team has employed in three years.

Finally there’s HRT, under new management and attempting to move to a new base in Spain. It’s not going to be easy for Pedro de la Rosa and his as- yet-unidentified team mate, and the canny management of Colin Kolles – who always seemed to juggle the funding and make things happen – may be missed.

The other big novelty of 2012 will of course be the US GP in Austin, and the real race is already on in Texas as COTA fights to get the facility ready in time. All reports suggest that the track layout is a great one. Let’s hope that the work is completed on schedule...

Adam Cooper notched up his 27th season as a racing journalist in 2011. He has written about F1 for SPEED.com since 2005. Follow him on Twitter.

The opinions reflected herein are solely those of the above commentator and are not necessarily those of SPEED.com, FOX, NewsCorp, or SPEED