Have you enjoyed F1 more than usual of late and want to place some bets on the upcoming season? Well, if you’re unsure where to begin, today we will cover some of the most popular wagers, how to bet on F1 and how to find your feet while exploring this new betting market.
How To Bet On F1 Racing: The Basics
While this might sound like quite generic advice, understanding any sport must be the foundation before you place any bet. This applies to more than F1 racing, where you need to grasp all the fundamentals of the season and the betting markets before you deposit your cash with a betting site or app. The same applies to football, rugby and all casino games. If you fail to prepare and don’t start off with safe gambling measures, then you could find yourself losing your money very quickly.
This year’s F1 championship stretches from March until December, with exactly two dozen races on the calendar. The vast majority of these races take place in the Northern Hemisphere, other than the Brazilian and Australian Grand Prix. The most notable ones in Europe, including Silverstone and Monza, as well as Suzuka in Japan, and the races in Bahrain and Saudi are starting to stick out on the calendar as race favourites for drivers and fans alike.
Structure Of Race Day
Each F1 circuit takes place over three days. The first two practice sessions make up the entirety of the first day. This allows drivers to test their cars, see how the bends work and for teams to finetune their strategy going into the race. For ardent fans who have a better idea of how to bet on F1, this is where the weekend begins.
Some analysts and bettors use the practice day to build a picture of drivers that may surprise them during qualifying or for market value, but this is often just an administrative day for the big teams and drivers to get the feel of the track and into business mode. The third and final practice session occurs on the morning of the second day, before the first of the three qualifying rounds occurs later that afternoon.
How To Bet On Formula 1 Qualifiers
Each F1 race has three qualifying rounds, determining each driver’s starting point on the grid. The first round involves all 20 drivers, while the top 15 enter the second qualifying round. The second round follows the same format as the first, with five more drivers being eliminated.
Finally, the third and final round ranks the top 10 starting positions, going from the fastest lap in descending order. You can find markets on all these rounds and even bet on the individual positions, but it is often the drivers at the top of the leaderboard who will command first place in qualifying.
Race Format And Point Scoring System
With each track roughly around 190 miles long, give or take a couple of miles either way, vehicles in Formula 1 racing are designed for this sort of distance. However, due to the sizes and designs of each track, there’s a significant number of differences with each circuit. Those who know how to bet on F1 understand how significant a role this can play, especially for certain drivers.
Most notably, the number of laps in each race can vary significantly. The Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps) has 44 laps, while Monaco, which weaves its way right through the streets of the city-state, has 78 laps.
Only the top 10 drivers will receive points, and only the top three will end up on the podium. The number of points drivers receive differs significantly, with 25, 18 and 15 for first, second and third, respectively, while the driver in 10th is the lowest scorer with a single point.
F1 Betting Markets Explained
Although you can bet on the qualifying rounds, the bulk of the markets revolve around the race itself. Knowing how to bet on Formula 1 racing involves all the outright and derivative markets that occur on race day, and if you can wrap your head around that, you’ll be able to come to terms with some of the top markets quickly.
Fastest Lap
The qualifying lap often gives a strong indicator as to how the race will shape up. Although there can be surprises, it is often the top five fastest drivers in the qualifying who will make up the podium finishes.
Not only can you bet on the fastest qualifying lap, but you can bet on the fastest lap in the race too. This is an intriguing market as it is not always the race winner who ends up having the fastest lap. Sometimes, drivers outside the top 10 will have the fastest lap.
Outright Markets
In F1 betting, outright markets cover the eventual championship winner throughout the season. For instance, betting on Max Verstappen to win yet another championship would be an outright bet. Other examples include a point over bet. For instance, Charles LeClerc to score over 200 points throughout the season.
Race Winner
This one is evident in the name. The race winner simply means the driver to finish at the top of the podium. While the driver that finishes top of the qualifying will often have the best chance of winning the race, this isn’t always what happens.
In addition to the race winner, you can bet on a cluster of finishing positions, such as a driver to finish in the top four or the exact order of the podium.
Team Bets
If you want to broaden your bet, you can aim for a particular team to get a specific number of points or win a race. For example, you can bet on a Mercedes driver to finish in the top six at the Bahrain Grand Prix; this means that if Lewis Hamilton or George Russell cracks the top six, your wager will be a success.
Similarly, with outright markets, you can bet on Williams or Red Bull to obtain a minimum number of points. This helps you to cast your net further and get more longevity out of your wager. Understanding how these bets all differ from each other is the cornerstone of any F1 betting guide.
Other Markets
We’ve only skimmed the tip of the iceberg here. While we might have covered the primary markets, there’s a whole sea of secondary markets that F1 fans like to explore during the season. These can range from miscellaneous bets, like the safety car coming out, to double bets, such as Max Verstappen winning Monza and Lewis Hamilton winning Silverstone.
Elements To Analyse As Part Of Your Formula 1 Betting
Building your F1 knowledge doesn’t just mean understanding how the races or the season works. It involves more intricate knowledge of the sport’s mechanics too. Here are some of the aspects to familiarise yourself with that can help guide you on how to bet on F1:
Getting To Know The Drivers
The internet is an excellent source of all F1 news; there’s no shortage of updates and information, and it’s a relentless stream from multiple angles, whether it’s articles, video content, or F1 podcasts.
By understanding the drivers more, how they perform on specific circuits or whether they’re in good form, you can build a picture or have a slightly better idea about how they’ll perform in the upcoming race. Other factors to consider include their performance in qualifying rounds. While this is not a foolproof method, knowledge is essential, and without it, it’s a much trickier road to navigate.
Track Types
Generally speaking, there are three different track types. Depending on the driver, they may perform better in certain conditions rather than all year round. This isn’t an issue for drivers like Max Verstappen, who seems to perform well on any type of track. The three classifications are hybrid, road and historical/traditional circuits.
Road circuits include iconic tracks like Monaco, which takes place exclusively through the winding roads, closing off large chunks of the city-state. Hybrids include a mix of roads and purpose-built tracks, such as the Canadian Grand Prix. Traditional tracks, such as Silverstone, are used exclusively for racing. Understanding which drivers fare best depending on the surface is something you should factor into your bet.
Weather And Conditions
Different drivers will react in various ways to weather conditions, whether it’s rain, sleet or blistering heat. Drivers from hotter climates can often adapt better to sweltering temperatures in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and other notoriously hot countries. Likewise, drivers from hot countries can struggle more in wet or slippery conditions, and diving into this information beforehand could help you find some value in the market.
Summary Of Our Formula 1 Betting Guide
Knowing how to bet on F1 stems from knowledge and experience, and of all the points to take with you today, we’d say this is the most important. It is the same with any betting market:
– Understand the basics.
– Familiarise yourself with the terms and betting markets.
– Bet only with money you can afford to lose.
F1 is an exhilarating business, and with new markets, especially in-play, popping up every season, there is a lot to sink your teeth into. If you’re new to F1 betting, this guide should help you understand the markets and how to bet safely, using knowledge to guide you on your way.
Please note that the information provided in this article is for entertainment purposes only. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information provided. Any action you take upon the information on this article is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any losses and damages in connection with the use of our article. We do not encourage gambling and remind you to gamble responsibly.
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