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Las Vegas Grand Prix predictions
- Ferrari fastest qualifying team – 10/3 with BetGoodwin
- Sergio Perez podium finish – 2/1 with Unibet
- Alexander Albon top-six finish – 10/1 with BetMGM
Las Vegas labels itself the entertainment capital of the world and Formula 1 is having to pull out all the stops to try and live up to Sin City’s reputation upon its highly-anticipated return.
The last time F1 came to the state of Nevada, they were relegated to racing around the car park of Caesars Palace. This time, Formula 1 is front and centre, taking over the world-famous Vegas Strip and surrounding streets.
F1's big return didn't get off to the smoothest of starts with first practice cancelled due to issues with the track.
Formula 1's owners hope they can still pull off a must-watch spectacle, albeit one that online betting sites expect to end in an all-too-familiar fashion.
World champion Max Verstappen is odds-on to add Las Vegas to his list of grand prix conquests as he chases an 18th win of the season and sixth victory in a row after dominating the Brazilian Grand Prix a fortnight ago.
The Red Bull driver has been outspoken in his criticism of this week's event, calling it “99% show, 1% sporting event” and branding the Vegas circuit as “not very interesting”, but will no doubt be all business when it’s time to go racing.
It will take something special to deny Verstappen victory in a city where the house usually wins. But, there are more variables with the Las Vegas Grand Prix than at any other race this season and Red Bull are unlikely to have it all their own way for the entire three days.
Flying Ferraris fighting for pole
Before digging into our Las Vegas Grand Prix predictions and examining the F1 odds on new betting sites, a bit of important information about the schedule and track.
The important on-track action will take place at night with the race taking place at 10pm local time on Saturday night (6am GMT Sunday). At this time of year, temperatures in Vegas plummet after the sun goes down and are set to be around 13C for qualifying and the race, potentially dipping to a record F1 low of 5C.
That creates issues with getting tyres up to temperature and grip for a blast around the 6.1km circuit, which features just 17 corners, plenty of length straights and promises to be one of the quickest tracks of the season.
With so many unknowns about the track and how the cars will perform, there’s the potential for a few surprises, starting in qualifying, where a Ferrari could nab pole position.
The Scuderia have six poles to their name this season, compared to Red Bull’s 13, and have been fast at tracks similar to Vegas.
They’ve performed well at low downforce circuits this year with Carlos Sainz the fastest qualifier at Monza, while their qualifying record at street circuits is respectable too, finishing top of the timesheets at both Azerbaijan and Singapore.
Given the low temperatures, Ferrari’s ability to get their tyres up to temperature quickly could prove very handy and we’re backing one of Charles Leclerc or Sainz to be on pole come race day.
Las Vegas Grand Prix Tip 1: Ferrari fastest qualifying team – 10/3 with BetGoodwin
Street king Perez can nab podium place
With the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships already in the bag for Red Bull, their only target left to achieve is to secure a first one-two finish in the individual standings.
Second place Sergio Perez is 32 points clear of Lewis Hamilton with only a maximum of 26 points available after Vegas so he could get the job done this weekend.
The Mexican driver approaches this race looking to improve on recent results having failed to make the podium in his last six starts.
He was unlucky not to break that streak in Brazil when coming out on the wrong side of a thrilling battle with Fernando Alonso for third, while that podium-less run also features two retirements.
Perez has an excellent reputation at street venues with his two wins this year coming at Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan, two tracks that mirror Vegas in terms of their length and high average speed.
Perez also nabbed second in Miami, another temporary track, this season and he needs a good end to the year to banish rumours surrounding him losing his seat at Red Bull.
A top-three finish in Vegas would go some way to doing that and he’s 2/1 to finish on the podium with Unibet.
Las Vegas Grand Prix Tip 2: Perez podium finish – 2/1 with Unibet
Albon hoping to strike it lucky in Vegas
Williams have talked a good game in the build-up to this week’s race, believing both the layout and temperatures could help them be extra competitive.
The large number of straights could prove very handy for Williams, who have shown they can be very quick in a straight line this year.
Alexander Albon also believes Williams should get their tyres fired up quicker in qualifying than some of its rivals and the potential is there for the Oxfordshire-based team’s best finish of the season.
Albon has been extremely competitive at the majority of high-speed circuits this year with his best finishes of seventh coming at Montreal and Monza.
The Thai-born driver had eight top-six finishes when at Red Bull but has yet to snag a top-six spot for Williams.
With Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren and Aston Martin all likely believing they have top-six worthy cars, competition for those places will be high. But given all the unknowns about this race, the opportunity could be there for Albon to climb up the grid.
We're backing Albon at 10/1 with BetMGM for a top-six finish with our final Las Vegas Grand Prix prediction.
Las Vegas Grand Prix Tip 3: Albon top-six finish – 10/1 with BetMGM
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Last Updated: 14th March 2024, 07:22 AM
