With preseason betting favorite Lewis Hamilton running in a slow third and last season\u2019s champion Max Verstappen being forced to retire late alongside teammate Sergio Perez, there’s no shortage of pressure and storylines entering Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
What Did We Learn From Last Week?<\/h3>\n
We learned that the Red Bull is a straight line beast, Ferrari seem to have the most consistent car this season and Mercedes is dealing with some serious \u2018porpoising\u2019 issues to start off the year.<\/p>\n
Now, what is porpoising you might ask. Basically it\u2019s a phenomenon back in F1 after a few decades spent out of the sport where cars experience a violent bouncing off the suspension when going at high speeds, and while every car was affected over the first few weeks of testing, it\u2019s been Mercedes that have carried over those issues into the start of the season.<\/p>\n
Huge Change in Odds<\/h3>\n
From going in as a betting favorite last week, Lewis Hamilton\u2019s odds of gaining a pivotal win here in Saudi Arabia have drifted out to a mammoth +1400 as issues with his car continue.<\/p>\n
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc come in as the two favorites for Sunday\u2019s race at odds of -105 and +165 respectively and after what we saw in the opening race in Bahrain, those odds are absolutely justified.<\/p>\n
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner pointed to a fuel system issue in last week\u2019s race and if the Red Bull\u2019s can sort that out ahead of this weekend, their power, especially on a track built for mostly full throttle, could be a decided advantage for them in this week\u2019s race.<\/p>\n
F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Prediction<\/h2>\n
Charles Leclerc posted the two fastest laps in Friday\u2019s practice and the Monaco man looks in strong form to potentially repeat his success here on Sunday.<\/p>\n
However, we\u2019re going with Max Verstappen this weekend and the Red Bulls. A cautious approach from team bosses at Red Bull last week in regards to tire selection and those same fuel issues we mentioned previously saw Red Bull dig themselves a bit of a hole both in terms of the constructor\u2019s championship and Verstappen\u2019s bid to win a second consecutive driver\u2019s championship also.<\/p>\n
However, Red Bull has the fastest car on the track, and that\u2019s a huge edge in a venue with as much straight line speed as Jeddah has, so it\u2019s hard to look past Max Verstappen getting back in the winner\u2019s enclosure here on Sunday.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re taking Max Verstappen at -105<\/strong> to win this weekend\u2019s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday.<\/p>\n Interested in placing a bet on Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix? DraftKings is offering a $1,000 Deposit Bonus<\/a> for first-time bettors in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Tennessee, Michigan, Virginia, Wyoming and Arizona.<\/em><\/p>\n
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