F1 betting & Motorsport Betting Strategies

Formula One is the biggest motorsport in the world, and its popularity stretches way back to its inaugural season in 1950, which followed several decades of Grand Prix racing. These days, the cars are faster than ever, and the drivers even richer – with the sport heading to every corner of the world, including exotic locations like Abu Dhabi, Suzuka and Kuala Lumpur, as well as famous courses such as Silverstone, Monte Carlo and Monza. It is a sport that combines glitz and glam with technical mastery and the chance of a disaster at any moment.

And, as is the case with any sport, Formula One betting is extremely popular, especially since the inception of F1 live betting – which allows fans to bet during the race, creating a truly immersive experience.

Of course, motorsport betting isn’t restricted to Formula One. In America, NASCAR rivals F1 in popularity, with NASCAR betting again a huge market. Then there’s Le Mans – the world’s oldest active sports car race, which has taken place in France annually since 1923 – and is a race enduringly popular with purist motor racing fans.

F1 Odds Explained

As you’ll quickly discover when looking at F1 odds, it’s not just the winner of a particular grand prix or the drivers’ championship you can back. Traditionally, F1 betting odds were just available on the drivers’ championship or constructors’ championship, as well as the winners of each Grand Prix. But these days you can bet on every detail of Formula One, from who’ll come top in qualifying, to who’ll record the fastest lap, and even handicap markets. Below we’ll have a quick run through of some of the main markets.

F1 Qualifying Bets

The first market Formula One fans tend to bet on during a race weekend is on the outcome of the qualifiers. Unsurprisingly, the most popular bet here is predicting who will qualify in pole position.
Qualifying takes place over three mini-sessions. After the first session, the six slowest cars will drop out and will start at the back of the grid, then another six drop out after the second session, leaving the top ten to compete between themselves for the front positions in the grid.
As well as betting on who will finish in pole position, players can also bet on who will achieve the fastest lap time during qualifying.

F1 Race Grand Prix Betting

Once qualifying has organised the grid, the big race takes place on Sunday. This is where most of Formula One betting takes place.
The most popular bets on race day are on the winning driver and constructor as well as who will achieve the fastest lap. But there is also a much more diverse selection of markets available, such as who will achieve a podium finish, how many cars will finish the race, driver head-to-heads (e.g. Lewis Hamilton v Sebastian Vettel) and more novelty markets such as will the safety car be deployed.
But one of the most fun markets in Formula One betting is speed row betting.

F1 Speed Row Betting

In F1, speed row bets allow fans to bet on the order of five pre-determined drivers. Here, the overall position of the drivers is irrelevant, this market effectively creates a five-man race between just these drivers. If the drivers finish in the order you predicted, you win your bet.
For example, say you were given the following drivers: Hamilton, Verstappen, Alonso, Raikkonen and Vettel. Maybe you predicted they would Hamilton would finish first out of these drivers, followed by Vettel, Verstappen, Raikkonen and Alonso. So, you would win your bet even if Hamilton came in 3rd place, Vettel in 5th, Verstappen 6th, Raikonnen 10th and Alonso in 12th. The actual position of the drivers in the whole race isn’t important – effectively you are just removing all the other drivers from the race and having your own mini Grand Prix between these five drivers.

F1 Season Betting

For players with an eye on the long-term, F1 season betting is for you.
Over the course of the season, you can bet on the winner of the drivers’ or constructors’ championship, as well as the number of points any driver will earn, or even a handicap bet between drivers. Also, you can bet on the number of podium finishes, and if you like a really, really, long-term bet, you could bet on the number of drivers’ championship a certain driver will win during their career (e.g. Max Verstappen to win three or more drivers’ championships).

Formula One Live Betting

Unsurprisingly, Formula One is a perfect sport for live betting.
Races last for several hours, and a change of conditions can wreak havoc to drivers – but create huge opportunities for anyone betting on F1 in-play.
If, for example, a sudden downpour were to occur, this would force a driver in dry tyres to pull in for a pitstop and lose a vital few seconds, or risk spinning out of control on a crucial corner. For fans of the sport, knowing details such as this can provide a huge advantage in F1 live betting.
Also, if a driver seems to be having the race of his life, live betting can provide you with a real-time opportunity to take advantage of this.

F1 Betting Strategies

As is with betting strategies on most sports, research is key.
Formula One is a sport with clear favourites, and this may blindside some people when betting. But looking at the previous form of certain drivers on specific tracks or conditions can help players find a very helpful edge.
A good example of favourable tracks can be demonstrated by Lewis Hamilton. Despite being the number one driver in the world, he has won the Australian Open just twice from 11 attempts. This pales in comparison to his record on home soil, where he has won four consecutive races at Silverstone between 2014 and 2017.

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