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F1 2020: Outright Preview


Darry Worthington runs the rule of the outright betting for the 2020 F1 season, and gives his verdict on who he thinks will win the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships.

We are set for a rather tumultuous F1 season this year with a lot of the early season races in Asia already being cancelled or hanging by a thread.

Nevertheless, we should witness some cracking racing this year as the rest of the field will be going all out to reign in champions Mercedes, who cantered to yet another Constructors’s and Drivers’ double last season.

Image Copyright – Steve Haag Sport

To Win Drivers’ Championship Outright
Lewis Hamilton 5/10
Max Verstappen 5/1
Valtteri Bottas 13/2
Charles LeClerc 13/2
Sebastian Vettel 12/1
Alexander Albon 100/1
Carlos Sainz 500/1

To Win Constructors’ Championship Outright
Mercedes 2/9
Red Bull 4/1
Ferrari 13/2
Racing Point 300/1

Teams and Drivers


Mercedes
Lewis Hamiliton
Valterri Bottas

Ferrari
Sebastian Vettel
Charles LeClerc

Red Bull
Alex Albon
Max Verstappen

McLaren
Lando Norris
Carlos Sianz

Renault
Daniel Ricciardo
Esteban Ocon

Toro Rosso / AlphaTauri
Pierre Gasly
Daniil Kvyat

Racing Point
Sergio Perez
Lance Stroll

Alfa Romeo
Kimi Raikonnen
Antonio Giovinazzi

Haas
Romain Grosjean
Kevin Magnussen

Williams
George Russell
Nicolas Latifi

Contenders for Drivers’ Championship
Lewis Hamilton
Last Season Finish – Champion

The ‘Brit was a class apart in 2019 where he won a staggering 11 of the 21 races. This was the exact same number of Grand Prix he won in 2018, while he won nine in 2018. So, out of the last 62 races, the ‘Brit has won 31 – exactly half the number of races on the calendar.

2019 also saw Hamilton bring up a milestone as he won his sixth Drivers’ Championship and moved within one Championship of Michael Schumacher’s all-time record of seven Drivers’ wins. You’d be a fool to bet against Hamilton matching that record this term.

Sebastian Vettel
Last Season Finish – Fifth

2019 was a year to forget for Sebastian Vettel with the German finishing in a lowly position of fifth. The four-time World Champion only managed to win one of the 21 Grand Prix held last year, with his victory coming out in Singapore.

To make matters worse for the veteran, he was somewhat upstaged by his new teammate, Charles LeClerc, who won both the Belgian and Italian Grand Prix and finished the season 24 points ahead of Vettel in fourth.

Max Verstappen – Last Season Finish – Third
Verstappen took a step in the right direction last season with the Red Bull man delivering a far more consistent showing across the entirety of the season. He was well-rewarded for his endeavours as well as he picked up third-place on the Drivers’ Championship standings.

A quick look at his overall record for last season makes for intriguing reading with the Dutchman only enduring two retirements – he had far more in 2017 and 2018 – while winning three races and finishing inside the Top 6 on 17 occasions.

Verdict: Hamilton
While I’d love to see a return to form for Sebastian Vettel I think the German veteran is fast becoming the next Kimi Raikonnen – a good support driver but no loner championship material. Verstappen, while super talented, just doesn’t the car to take on Mercedes over the duration of the season.

Constructors’ Championship

Mercedes
Last Season Finish – Champions

Mercedes are short favourites with the bookmakers, which is no surprise when you look at what the Silver Arrows managed to accomplish last season; they claimed one-two finishes at nine of the 21 Grand Prix and had both cars on the podium in a further five races.

They’ll once again undoubtedly have the best car on circuit, and one does fell they dominate on the majority of this year’s tracks.

Ferrari
Last Season Finish – Runners-Up

If it wasn’t for a solid showing from new boy Charles LeClerc then Ferrari would have been in big trouble last season. The Prancing Stag only managed five race wins in 2020 withy LeClerc providing three of them.

Ferrari have been struggling during pre-season testing with their car looking rather sluggish. This could be a ploy, however, and they may have a decent car up their sleeves.

Red Bull
Last Season Finish – Third

Red Bull made a bold gamble last season when they promoted youngster Alex Albon but the move worked a treat as they became a far more productive side once Albon partnered Verstappen, with Albon racking up a number of Top 6 finishes near the tail-end of the season.

If  Verstappen can secure a solid amount of podium finishes, and Albon can ensure he’s in the Top 6 in the majority of this year’s races, then Red Bull may well beat Ferrari to second-place on the Constructors’ standings.

Verdict: Mercedes
I cannot see them being challenged this year. They have looked decent in pre-season and with the engineers and income they have at their disposal they are always going to be able to adjust their cars to ensure they are the best on track.

Written by Darry Worthington for Hollywoodbets

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