Bet Selections in Australian Grand Prix
The 2023 Formula 1 season has not been a whitewash. It has been a blue wash! Two comfortable 1-2 finishes for the Red Bull team – in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia – means the reigning champions in blue uniforms are already well clear of their rivals.
This weekend’s race in Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia, should be another cakewalk for Max Verstappen and his rear gunner, Sergio Perez. The bookmakers agree. The Unibet online sportsbook – while offering the top price about Verstappen winning the race – makes the Dutchman just 2/5 to score. Perez is available on 9/2.
Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez have plenty of reasons to be happy. ©Getty/RedBull.
Liberty Media, the owners of Formula 1, would surely prefer the sport to be competitive. But Red Bull’s domination contradicts the definition of sport. Television screens across the globe are likely to be turned over for good unless the Red Bull monopoly is broken.
A safety car deployed at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix compressed the field and momentarily allowed for some wheel-to-wheel action. But the call for a safety car should have a defined objective, and its use a fortnight ago – to recover a broken-down car that did not represent a hazard or call for marshals to be on the racetrack – seemed erroneous verging on deceitful.
The Safe Bet and the Safest Bet
One suspects more of the same could happen during 2023. It is a trend that began at the 2022 Miami Grand Prix when a mind-numbing procession got a much-needed kick-start 16 laps from the end.
Our William Hill review found they offer the best available odds on a safety car being called into play this Sunday. The proposition is not quoted at a ‘get rich’ price. It is just 3/10 and therefore unattractive while probably in line with true probability.
If one safety car period is probable, how about two? Bet365 offers 7/4 that there will be over 1.5 uses of the safety car during Sunday’s race. Given this bet would have been a winner after just 24 laps of last year’s Australian Grand Prix, this is a great proposition and a strong recommendation.
Max for Fastest Lap? The Stats Differ
Max Verstappen gleefully claimed the fastest lap of the Saudi Grand Prix to earn an additional world championship point and remain at the top of the standings. Such was his pace at the end of the race, it appeared possible he could have caught and passed his leading teammate and taken the race win.
Skeptics – Formula 1 has several of them – suspect the famous Red Bull multi-21 instruction may have been sent out to Verstappen when the race entered its closing stages. The question this weekend is: Can the reigning world champion claim a second-fastest-lap accolade if/when predictably leading the race?
It has to be considered unlikely. 250/1 shot Zhou Guanyu recorded the fastest race lap at the season-opening contest in Bahrain. His final pitstop for fresh tires came long after Verstappen – the all-the-way winner – made his only pitstop.
Vitally, Verstappen’s overall statistics suggest he should be a 7/2 shot in any race for the fastest lap award. In 2022 Verstappen claimed five fastest laps during the 22-race season. 2020 and 2021 combined produced a total of nine.
Motorsport betting sites rate Verstappen’s chances of claiming the fastest lap in Australia on 11/10. The advice has to be a ‘layer’ of this outcome at one of the betting exchanges. Alternatively, identify the best odds offered about a clutch of drivers and make your investments on individuals at double and treble-digit prices.
A Top-Six Could Be a Stroll
Fernando Alonso has driven his Aston Martin into third position in both 2023 races. Technical data suggests this circuit should suit his car more than Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Therefore, another podium finish for the Spaniard is likely – and the outcome is only an 8/13 chance according to Formula 1 betting sites.
An alternative bet suggestion is a top-6 finish for Alonso’s teammate, Lance Stroll, at Coral bookmaker’s industry top price of 8/13. The Canadian achieved a top-6 finish in the season opener and only a technical issue with his car (leading to his retirement) prevented him from gaining a healthy finish in Saudi Arabia.
Sundays Best Formula 1 Bets
Two or more safety car periods – 7/4
Lay Max Verstappen in fastest lap market – 2.2
Lance Stroll to finish in the top-six – 8/13
