Couch Critic provides his betting tips for the Austrian Grand Prix which takes place at the Red Bull Ring, Spielberg on Sunday 5th July
FORMULA 1
Austrian Grand Prix Race 1 – Spielberg. Red Bull Ring, Sunday 05 July @ 15:10
OVERVIEW
The 2020 Formula One season never got underway as COVID hit in full force on the eve of the season opener in Australia. Near on four months down the line we are finally ready to fire up the engines of a new-look Formula 1 season.
With a condensed calendar fans will be treated to almost continuous action over weekends and first up is an unprecedented double in Austria as both the first two races are to be held at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.
TRACK PREVIEW
After not having much success at the track baring their name, Max Verstappen is now poised to make it three from three this weekend. Apart from that, the positive news for the rest of the field is that the Red Bull Ring has hardly been Hamilton’s favourite hunting ground with only one victory in the last five attempts. Further, the track at Spielberg is know for favouring outright horsepower over technical efficiency with regard to downforce.
Yet, there are a few things to keep in mind before writing off the Mercs. Pre-season testing (which was quite some time ago now) showed the Silver Arrows were still the team to beat – or are they the Black Arrows now? Ferrari have also apparently given up a bit of top end speed for better downforce, which might work well long term but could see them give up their edge in the first two races. Lastly, Verstappen won in 2018 off the back off Merc troubles and overtook Leclerc late in the race, and in controversial manner, to win in 2019 so its not like it’s plain sailing for Red Bull around this track.
Verdict
Before the start of any season all we really have to go on is speculation with regard to who will come out of pre-season stronger. This time it is even more uncertain seeing as that the break was so much longer. Teams are rolling out upgrades for this race before the original packages have even had a chance to show its stuff. All of this makes it extremely tough to make any confident picks for this one. Yet one has to follow the value and stay mindful of what happened here in 2019. Thus, I am looking for a similar result as last year and the Mercs possibly not starting as strong as many expect.
BETOLIMP BEST BETS
Fastest Qualifier – Charles Leclerc @ 7.50
The young Charles has become a bit of a qualifying expert and at a decent price he is worth a go to do emulate his 2019 efforts.
Both Leclerc and Verstappen to finish on the podium – YES @ 2.95
For my main play I am hoping to see Leclerc qualify well and then stay in the mix. Even if Lewis does pitch up in Austria I’m hoping that both Mercs don’t dominate for this bet to have a decent chance of arriving.
All Austraian Grand Prix Markets
Note, odds are subject to change
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(Note, all odds quoted are subject to change)
Couch Critic
