The Austrian Grand Prix takes place at Spielberg this weekend with practice and qualifying followed by the GP proper on Sunday afternoon. Armchair fans can keep up to speed with the action live on Sky Sports and BBC Sport and if past meetings are anything to go on, this should be a thriller. Here are our top Austrian Grand Prix betting tips.
Lewis Hamilton did as expected last week when winning the French Grand Prix at Circuit Paul Ricard with the Brit continuing his dominance of the season. He went off in pole position, was hot favourite with the bookies and went as a man with a point to prove in the race. He did just that, leading from line to line in what was little more than a procession headed by the Mercedes pilot.
Hamilton was followed home by teammate Valterri Bottas in second with the podium finishes completed by Charles Leclerc who continued to improve and make headlines in the sport. The latter has a big season ahead of him, but he’ll do well to land a glove on the drivers championship leader with Lewis already enjoying a sizeable advantage over the chasing pack.
Hamilton Out in Front
The updated results following last weekend’s French Grand Prix has Lewis Hamilton at the top of the drivers championship table with 187 points on the board. He has won six of the first eight races, teammate Valterri Bottas claiming the other two to put Mercedes in a commanding position, despite the season still being in the early exchanges.
Sebastian Vettel is next in line to complete the top three. The German was one of the pre-season favourites with bookies but already finds himself 76 points off Hamilton’s lead and almost out of the running. If he’s to turn it around it would rank as one of the sport’s greatest comebacks. Others worth a mention on the back of a decent start are Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly. It’s no real surprise to see odds makers side with Lewis Hamilton to win the drivers championship this season as they were right behind him before the start of race one.
Those who have left it late but have already seen enough and want to back Lewis for yet another world title will have to make do with the 1/12 offered by William Hill. That’s short but it’s also standard. Mercedes are favourites in the constructors, of course, at no brighter than 1/100. Ferrari are second favourites but have a 40/1 price tag attached by Ladbrokes traders, showing just what the trading team things of that one-horse race. The results so far means there’s little point betting on either market, unless we get a big upset over the course of summer.
Brit Favourite for More of the Same
Turning our attentions to this weekend’s race in Austria and the betting suggests we should prepare for more of the same, that judgement made before a wheel has been spun in anger. Lewis Hamilton is hot favourite to win the Grand Prix and those who enjoy sticking with the Englishman can get their hands on 8/11 when playing at Ladbrokes. That’s plenty tight but it’s also market best price at the start of the week with many bookies making the same bet a 4/6 shot. Not a lot of difference at first glance but if it’s your strategy to back Lewis in every race, that will soon eat up your profit margin.
Last year’s Austrian Grand Prix was won by Max Verstappen at the conclusion of what was an incident packed contest. The Red Bull driver came home ahead of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel, two men wearing the famous red of Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton was nowhere to be seen that day and having only claimed the back the world championship lead the week before, he lost it again when forced to retire. A loss of fuel pressure was given as the reason for him pulling up and it left race goers feeling short-changed. It wasn’t as good a day as it should’ve been.
Will that ensure Lewis goes out all guns blazing in Austria, determined to prove a point and win the trophy that was so cruelly snatched from him 12 months ago. Without factoring that in for a second, we know he’s more than good enough and we know he’s the kind of driver who will want to make amends for last year’s disappointment, so we fully expected to see him at odds on.
One for your Accas
The price is short, but it looks difficult to argue against and we’d suggest putting it to good use in your accumulators. His form tells us it’s a leg that should come good without too much trouble. If you’re after more of a price, however, there’s plenty to catch your eye. The race winner betting has Bottas at 3/1 with Ladbrokes, Vettel 11/2 William Hill, Leclerc 13/2 (William Hill), Max Verstappen 28/1 (Bet365) and Pierre Gasly heads the list of no hopers at 325/1.
The podium finish last year had Verstappen first, followed by Raikkonen in second and bronze medallist Vettel. Will either of those men finish on the step again? Verstappen is 10/3 at William Hill for a podium finish, Raikkonen 66/1 with Bet365 and Vettel is no more than 2/5 at Bet365 to be one of the first three to cross the line and stand on a step for the national anthem of the winner. The fastest qualifier will give you an early interest in this race and Hamilton is 8/11 at William Hill.