The highly-anticipated Miami Grand Prix around the Hard Rock Stadium is now only days away. And after a dominant victory at last week’s Emilia Romagna GP, defending champion Max Verstappen is favored to win this inaugural race.
Race weekend gets started on Friday May 6th with two practice sessions, while qualifying takes place on Saturday with another practice session ahead of the race on Sunday.
This will be the first running of the event which is planned to take place for the next ten years. It will be a 5.4 kilometer circuit and the race will be over 57 laps. Find out what’s in store with our full Miami GP preview – including all the latest odds – below.
Miami Grand Prix Contenders
Max Verstappen +120
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster start for the defending F1 champion. The reliability issues that plagued Verstappen and the Red Bull team back in the season’s early weeks seem now to be a thing of the past, making him a big threat.
Max’s domination of the Emilia Romagna GP in the previous race weekend has brought him right back into Championship contention after two non-finishes in the first three races. In Italy, the Dutchman claimed pole on the Friday, won Saturday’s sprint race from the front, and won the lead throughout the main event en route to victory with the fastest lap as an added bonus.
The 27 point deficit in the standings can be further reduced with a win here in the US, and given his dominance in Imola, he’s top of the betting for a reason. Get all your latest F1 odds with FanDuel.
Charles Leclerc +150
While Charles Leclerc still holds a healthy lead in the Championship standings, there are signs that momentum may be shifting away from the 24-year old Ferrari star.
A late mistake in Italy dropped Leclerc down the grid last time out, costing him some crucial points, and leaving him outside of the top two for the first time this year.
With two wins and a runners-up finish in the opening 4 rounds, this consistency and the promise of a fast circuit in Miami means the Monaco star could bounce back and challenge Verstappen for the win. Enjoy a risk free bet up to $1000 with BetMGM for new players.
Sergio Perez +1,200
Sergio Perez has taken to the pressure of driving for Red Bull like a duck to water, and has started the season in impressively consistent form.
He currently sits third in the Drivers standings with two podiums already under his belt and he arrives in Miami on the back of successive P2 finishes.
Despite finishing 16 seconds behind his teammate Verstappen in Italy, his team recorded a stand out 1-2 finish, indicating that they are most definitely back in business.
Only Leclerc has registered more podiums than Perez, and with that in mind, the Mexican has to be viewed as the standout Miami pick should anything happen to the front two in the betting.
Carlos Sainz +1,600
This is going to be a big weekend for Spanish star Carlos Sainz Jr. He heads into the fifth race of the season following back-to-back DNFs and completing just one lap in both races combined.
The Ferrari man suffered steering issues when spinning out of the Australian Grand Prix. Two weeks later, he was forced to retire from the Emilia Romagna GP after Ricciardo took him out on the opening lap.
He has yet to win in any of his 145 Formula One starts to this point, but he will be looking to complete the set of podium finishes with a P2 finish in Bahrain and P3 in Saudi Arabia earlier in the season.
It’s fair to say he hasn’t had the best of luck recently, and the pressure will be on for him to get back into contention at the front of the grid. BetRivers is your betting base for Formula One.
Miami Grand Prix Outsiders
Lando Norris +500 for podium finish
Lando Norris was an excellent third in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and will be looking to make it back-to-back top-three finishes.
There was a lot of worry from his supporters after finishing in 15th but fast-forward to Miami and Norris sits sixth place on the leaderboard following 3 consecutive top-ten finishes.
His McLaren car seems to be producing far greater speed and consistency in recent weeks and there’s no reason why the Brit can’t challenge the frontrunners in Florida.
Lewis Hamilton +500 for podium finish
Lewis Hamilton has been strangely out-of-sorts, enduring an extremely challenging start to the campaign. He was forced to issue an apology to Mercedes following his 14th place finish in Imola, one of the worst races of his 16-season career.
The scale of the disappointing start is highlighted by the fact he sits 21 points and 3 places behind his Mercedes team-mate George Russell in the standings.
Hamilton’s fall from grace is difficult to explain. It’s true his car cannot compete with the pace of Red Bull and Ferrari at this stage, and he may also be struggling to get over last season’s controversial Championship loss to Verstappen.
Hamilton’s hopes of turning things around in time for the Miami Grand Prix are running on fumes. A lot will come down the upgrades Mercedes have planned for Miami, the most significant yet this season. If he gets a competitive car, he may have an outside chance of returning to the top-three places.
George Russell +500 for podium finish
George Russell has made an impressive start to his life at Mercedes. Despite the limitations of his car, he has outperformed his illustrious teammate Hamilton in each of the past three races.
The former Williams star comes to the US on the back of four straight top-five finishes. Given the constraints he has faced, he has to be considered as one of the top performers of the season and is consistently getting the job done.
If he continues this hot streak, there’s every chance he will find himself on the Miami podium on Sunday.
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