Preview: Old hands to the fore?

The season-opening round at Interlagos was the first visit to the bumpy Brazilian circuit for the Formula 1 feeder series and was an action-packed start to the season.

Front-runners in San Marino will likely come from those with previous seasons of F3000 under their belts. As shown by the predominance of Brazilians at the front in Sao Paulo, local knowledge and previous experience counts for much.

In the opener, Briton Justin Wilson kept a cool head to win in Brazil - apart from an overexcited spin immediately after crossing the line. The former Formula Palmer Audi Champion clawed his way from 16th on the grid at Imola last year to finish a creditable eighth, and so will be expecting to go well again this weekend.

Fellow F3000 frontrunner and Super Nova ace Mark Webber will most certainly be a contender in San Marino. The Benetton test-driver will be keen to keep his nose clean after losing out on second place in Brazil for overtaking before the green flag when the race was re-started after a safety car period.

The older hands cannot expect to have it all their own way, however, as hot on their heels is a pack of rookies who are all hungry for success. Leading the way is last year's British Formula 3 champion Antonio Pizzonia, who immediately established himself as a frontrunner in Brazil.

The young Brazilian was one of the few locals to have no previous experience of the track, yet led convincingly in the first part of the race before dropping back after a stop-go penalty for overtaking under yellow flags. The fact that Pizzonia has no previous experience of the Imola track will be of little hindrance to the 20-year-old, who lost out on what could have been a debut win in his home country.

Pizzonia's Petrobras Jr team mate is Ricardo Sperafico, and the reigning Italian F3000 champion was closer to his stable mate than many expected in Brazil. After a year driving in Italy, Sperafico has prior knowledge of the Autodromo Enzo E Dino Ferrari which should help to keep him on Pizzonia's tail.

Wilson's Nordic team mate Tomas Enge will be hoping to live up to his pre-season title-contender billing and make up for a lost opportunity in Brazil. The Czech fell foul to the same misdemeanour as Pizzonia and after qualifying an impressive fifth, and he dropped to 12th by the chequered flag.

Great things are also expected of last year's German Formula 3 champion Giorgio Pantano. The Italian failed to impress in winter testing and finished a lowly 19th in Brazil after a first corner clash, but will be keen to open his scoring account this weekend.

The surroundings of San Marino might seem more familiar than in Brazil, but with such a wide variety of potential winners this weekend, the identity of the victor is anyone's guess.