Since Codemasters picked up the exclusive rights to Formula 1 racing from Sony, many have been waiting for a formal announcement on what the company’s plan will be for releasing a new F1 title. News arrived today that is certainly going to leave many scratching their heads.

Codemasters will be first bringing their new F1 title to be called F1 2009 to the PSP and Wii later this fall in a release sometime during the third quarter. The company plans to have the F1 2010 release for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC early next year.

The F1 2009 release for the Wii will be the first F1 title to be released on the console. The Wii and PSP versions will feature multiplayer modes, but it is unclear as of yet what all these modes may be. The Wii version is said to be able to support both split-screen and cooperative race modes, but no word on the possibility of online play. The F1 2009 release will be the first title to ever include the Singapore night race, as well as the first title that will include the new KERS technology that was introduced into F1 this year.

As for the F1 2010 that will be coming to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC platforms, the company says that the title will include everything that will be in the F1 2009 release for the PSP and Wii, plus the HD technology that will be made possible by the use of an enhanced version of the company’s award winning EGO engine that powered Grid. Specifics on the F1 2010 release have yet to be finalized, but the company plans to announce more when the title gets closer to release.

The news that the 360, PS3, and PC versions of the game will be delayed till next year will not sit well with many who expected Codemasters to be able to quickly get out an F1 release before the end of the year. Players on non-Sony platforms have been waiting a long time for a new F1 title and the news today will not sit well with many fans.

We have to question the wisdom of even releasing an F1 title for the Wii, while it is a bit more understandable on the PSP since Sony had previously released an F1 title on that platform in the past. Our insiders tell us that the expansion of the franchise onto multiple platforms is necessary to pay for the heavy licensing fees that it costs to bring out an official F1 title. In addition, the company wants to test the waters on the Wii and PSP platforms to gauge the response to a F1 title on these platforms, according to our sources.

We have to wonder what kind of F1 title the company could produce for the Wii platform. Due to the target market of the Wii itself, we tend to think that it will be a bit watered down and not feature some of the simulation aspects that are likely to be found on the F1 2010 title when released for the 360, PS3, and PC platforms. If Codemasters does elect to support the Wii driving wheel, however, it could prove to be an interesting title on the Wii platform. Only time will tell.