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Now it is pretty much down to the ability of the drivers and engineers as well as the performance of the cars during qualifying and then the race - and that cranks up the sense of anticipation even more.

For , it is pretty much do or die this weekend. If Button scores five or more points than his he will be crowned world champion.

There are , but the top line is that he needs to win in Suzuka. In terms of the constructors' title, Red Bull must cut Brawn's lead by at least seven points to stay in the hunt.

Having said all that, here are my top-eight predicted finishers for the Japanese Grand Prix:

Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
Mark Webber (Red Bull)
Rubens Barrichello (Brawn)
Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
Jenson Button (Brawn)
Adrian Sutil (Force India)
Nico Rosberg (Williams)
Fernando Alonso (Renault)

Sebastian Vettel is not completely out of the running for the drivers' championship

The track which is most similar to Suzuka is with Vettel leading home Webber. Of course, other teams have improved since the British GP but and a specification to fit the track's famous high-speed corners.

They have to hope hang on; especially as far as Vettel is concerned as he has used up his maximum quota of eight engines for the season.

Red Bull know that this track should suit them more than the Brawns so it is far better for Christian Horner's team to have tried and failed rather than to have taken a conservative approach.

are not allowed in Formula 1 but it is possible for the drivers to 'come to some sort of arrangement' - think back to China last season when championship contender Felipe Massa 'got past' his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen late on in the race.

For those reasons I've gone for Vettel to take the victory. He has to win to keep his title hopes, and the hopes of his team, alive.

. He knows this is his best-ever chance of winning the championship, especially if paddock speculation that he is is correct.

The Brazilian needs to attack . He has proved , winning in 2003, and if there is any hint of dampness on the track he knows exactly how to cope with that.

In contrast, . He would like to win but it's not about winning this race, it's about winning the championship. He is looking relaxed here and I'm told he's very confident.

On the other hand, there are plenty of reasons for the Englishman to go for glory in Japan. He has a lot of history here because of ; he has spent the last few days in Tokyo and will stay on for another week after the race and is Japanese.

What's more, Button would love to clinch the title as soon as possible to take the pressure off.

Brawn know they perform better on stop-start tracks, for example in Singapore, but even if they don't expect to have the out-right pace of the Red Bulls they are still to be feared.

I have predicted Lewis Hamilton to take fourth place in Japan. and McLaren were very happy with the world champion's performance on Friday, .

For the likes of and the , their first race here could be a real struggle but , he has the class to learn the track straight away.

The pressure is off Hamilton and now he is driving for fun. Watching him on ; he flew up the hill and was almost two seconds quicker than anyone else even on the intermediate tyres.

Adrian Sutil, who is , loves this track and as a former Japanese Formula Three champion he knows it well. The team didn't particularly want him to go out in the rain-drenched second session but he is so confident that the car will run well this weekend that he went out anyway.

The downforce here isn't quite the way Force India would like it but they feel it is still suited to their car's strengths.

were greatly encouraged by , despite his pit-lane penalty, and they have brought a new front wing and diffuser to Japan. Rosberg is also driving with the pressure off, if is to be believed.

Having survived 'crash-gate', Fernando Alonso will be driving for Ferrari next season

Fernando Alonso is also in a similar frame of mind now . A Renault team insider told me he had never experienced such an atmosphere in the team following Alonso's third place in Singapore. There was such a sense of achievement in getting back on the podium after .

There is not a single driver who fails to be inspired by , which returns after a two-year absence. Its high-speed corners, variable gradients and wonderful S's snaking up the hill in sector one are all part of its magnificent challenge

And how ironic would it be if the Brawn team captured one or both of the championships on offer this weekend at Honda's home track, just 10 months after the Japanese giant pulled the plug on the team .