Verstappen bookies’ favourite for maiden F1 title after Zandvoort triumph

Max Verstappen cruised to victory at the first Dutch Grand Prix since 1985 and much to the delight of the onlooking orange army, the Red Bull star regained the lead in the Formula One Drivers World Championship.

 

Having pipped Lewis Hamilton to pole position on Saturday, it was a comfortable race in the end for Verstappen, and even with teammate Sergio Perez out of the picture towards the back of the grid, Mercedes were not able to put together a successful strategy to prevent the Dutchman’s win.

 

While Valtteri Bottas was able to earn his seventh podium finish of the campaign, he was nowhere near the top two and on Monday afternoon it was announced that the Finn would be joining Alfa Romeo for 2022, with George Russell surely taking his place.

 

All of this means that Verstappen is now as short as 4/7 with some bookmakers to win the Drivers Championship, with seven-time champion Hamilton out to 6/5.

 

The Brit doesn’t have to wait long to try and get back on track, and the bookies are split in terms of who should be the favourite for the Italian Grand Prix this weekend.

 

Hamilton is a five-time winner of the event, and a number of betting sites have him slightly ahead of his rival on the betting board at Evens, with Verstappen at 11/10. 

 

Some firms have it the other way around, but the only thing that is certain is that anybody other than those two coming out on top would be a huge surprise, with Bottas at 14/1 as third-favourite.

 

An equally close betting market is the Constructors Championship, which Mercedes currently lead by 12 points. That slender advantage is enough to see them slightly favoured with most bookies but they are far from long odds-on at 8/11 generally.

 

With Russell set to team up with Hamilton next term, Mercedes could be a stronger force as a team but there could also be a genuine third challenger in the Drivers Championship, at least if Russell’s recent performances are anything to go by.

 

The 23-year-old’s outstanding lap in Q3 at the Belgian Grand Prix led to a second-place finish in the Williams, and he has since been given far more respect in betting markets such as a top-six finish, for which he is priced at 11/2 in Monza.

 

With there being a range of betting promotions available in the UK, you can claim free bets and therefore back outcomes such as a Russell top-six without risking your own money.

 

Another young British driver who has impressed this season is Lando Norris. He is now fourth in the Drivers Standings following a disappointing P10 in the Netherlands, but the youngster can be backed at 5/2 to end up on the podium this Sunday.

 

Red Bull’s Perez, who was voted Driver of the Day last time out, is also 5/2 for a place in the top three. The Mexican, who will remain with his current team for 2022, will be looking to hunt down both Norris and Bottas in the standings.