Bryce’s Bets -- F1's French Grand Prix
Hello to another race weekend! After a week off, it’s great to see the best drivers in the world race once again. The summer break is approaching fast and there’s only one more race in Hungary next weekend before the Formula One teams have a month off. For this weekend, the drivers are flying around Circuit Paul Ricard in France.
This track is ugly to look at with its asphalt run-off areas and is one of the least popular tracks on the Formula One calendar. However, last year’s race was entertaining as Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were on opposite strategies and Verstappen caught Hamilton with one lap to go.
This year, Ferrari has looked very impressive on a track thought to be advantageous to Red Bull. The Ferrari’s have paced three out of the four sessions so far, and Charles Leclerc is on pole followed by Verstappen and Sergio Perez. Leclerc’s teammate Carlos Sainz will be starting from 19th position following his car using more control electronics than allowed.
Before looking at the bets for the French GP, let’s look back on the picks made for the Austrian Grand Prix two weeks ago. A cash sign means it hit, an X means it did not:
Charles Leclerc to win +275 $
Leclerc and Ferrari finally got their strategy right and Leclerc won his first race since Australia! It’s mind blowing it was such a long time between wins when Leclerc has led so many laps this year. Ferrari’s tires held up better than Red Bull’s so the Italian team could keep their cars on longer stints. Leclerc had the fresh tires in the end and was able to pick up a desperately needed win.
Number of Classified Drivers Over 16.5 -125 $
This was the first bet like this featured on this column and it hit. The thought process behind this pick was there haven’t been too many big crashes other than Silverstone this year and mechanical failures at this stage of the season should be in the past. This assessment was accurate enough as 17 drivers finished. This is a bet to keep an eye on as the season progresses.
Carlos Sainz Top Three Finish -133 X
This was a really bad break, literally. Sainz had good pace and was ready to pass Verstappen for second place with less than 20 laps to go when his engine blew and he was forced to retire. It’s another problem for Sainz who has had great pace recently.
Fernando Alonso Top Ten Finish +190 $
Alonso had a disastrous start to the weekend, as he had to start from the back of the grid because of his retirement in the sprint race. Alonso once again fought his way through the field and finished tenth after starting 19th. Never count out the two-time world champion from finishing in the points.
Week Record: 3-1
Overall Record: 16-13
************
Now onto Sunday's French Grand Prix. Here are the best picks without any odds from a specific site. Find the best odds where you can!
Charles Leclerc to Win
Leclerc has plus odds to win even though he is starting first. Talk about value. The presumption is Verstappen will show better pace, but it hasn’t shown so far. Leclerc has been faster in three out of four sessions this weekend. Bet on Leclerc to continue his winning ways and close the gap in the championship.
Max Verstappen to Win
On the other hand, pick Verstappen as well if you want to be very safe. The idea here is if you picked both and one of them won, you’d still break even. Verstappen’s odds are around even. It is extremely likely one of these two drivers wins. First, they have better pace than anyone else except Sainz, but he is starting from the back of the grid. Second, Leclerc and Verstappen have won nine out of eleven races so far. If you want to go high risk and high reward go with Leclerc.
Daniel Ricciardo Top Ten Finish
Ricciardo has been brought up a lot due to the McLaren drama. His seat is hot right now as there could be some young IndyCar drivers coming to take his place. Ricciardo needs some good finishes to settle down the critics as he has had an awful season so far. Ricciardo’s McLaren just got a big upgrade and he is starting ninth as well. The odds are around –115 to –130. Look for Ricciardo to stay in the backend of the top ten.
Pierre Gasly Top Ten Finish
The French driver struggled to qualify for his home grand Prix after looking quick in practice. He was fifth and seventh fastest in the first two practice sessions. Gasly then lost that pace and failed to get out of Q1. He will line up 14th due to other drivers having penalties. Look for Gasly to rebound and find the pace again as AlphaTauri look to be quicker this weekend.
Best of luck betting and be sure to continue to check out all our content on AutoRacingDigest.com.