Certainly, the most-used Formula 1 betting sites agree with our Verstappen-or-Leclerc sentiment. Both are the runaway betting favorites to win the title right now. The next-closest driver to them (Lewis Hamilton) has a betting line +3000 longer than them. Here are the top favorites to win this years world championship:
| Driver |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Max Verstappen | +100 | +100 |
| Charles Leclerc | +100 | +100 |
| Lewis Hamilton | +3300 | +3300 |
| George Russell | +5000 | +5000 |
| Carlos Sainz | +5000 | +5000 |
| Sergio Perez | +8000 | +8000 |
2022 F1 Season Recap
Before we get too ahead of ourselves with what could happen the rest of 2022, let’s recap what HAS already happened during the 2022 F1 season. Verstappen and Leclerc have split winning the four races, two apiece. But despite that, Ferrari’s Leclerc owns a decent lead over Red Bull’s Verstappen in the standings. Leclerc is one with 86 points, while Verstappen is second with 59 points — a sizable 27-point difference.
Reliability issues are to blame for that gap. In the two races that Leclerc won, Verstappen fizzled out with DNFs. A fuel pump issue stopped Verstappen in the Bahrain GP, while a fuel leak undid him in Australia. In both races, Verstappen was in second place too. If he would’ve finished those races in second, Verstappen would be the standings leader by nine points.
For what it’s worth, Red Bull’s car finally looked fine at the most recent Emilia Romagna GP. Verstappen zoomed past a leading Leclerc in the sprint race on Saturday, then captured the outright win the next day (Leclerc spun out and finished sixth). Verstappen also took the pole position for both and recorded the fastest lap. Oh, did we mention he lapped rival Lewis Hamilton during the race? Yeah, he did that too.
Speaking of Hamilton, we’re actually stunned his betting odds are third-best. The seven-time world champion has had a season to forget so far. This is where he’s finished during all four races: third, 10th, 4th, and 13th. Hamilton’s rough start has him sitting in seventh place on the overall leaderboard with a mere 28 points. This has led to Hamilton himself telling the media, “I'm out of the championship, for sure." If he’s admitting that after four races, you may want to skip a futures bet on Hamilton — no matter how tantalizing his odds look for an all-time great driver.
Betting Pick To Win F1 Championship
In 2022 Alright, so let’s cut to the chase: between Leclerc and Verstappen, who’s the better betting pick to win the 2022 F1 championship? Welp, the difference may very well come down to mentality. Both Ferrari and Red Bull have blazing fast cars so differences in that department are minuscule at best.
As the reigning champion of the world, we know Verstappen has the composure to repeat as the title-winner. We mean, can anything top the chaos of the 2021 season? The crashes, the public spats with Mercedes, effects of COVID, a controversial final lap to determine the world title? Probably not and if Verstappen can thrive in that messy environment, then we can’t imagine anything in 2022 throwing him off his game.
Leclerc’s mentality is a much bigger variable. We mean, he’s only 24 years old (same age as Verstappen) but up until a month ago, he had never won an F1 race in his career. Now he’s going to win the whole championship? On the surface, that’s tough to believe in our book.
But to his credit, Leclerc does have a sense of calm in his demeanor so far. Former Ferrari driver and current F1 commentator Marc Gene has said the same thing. According to him, the Leclerc of 2022 is a “2.0 version of himself.” Gene said the driver's mindset was completely changed and no longer emotional like once before.
While a bet on either driver is a respectable sports betting strategy, we just have more confidence in Verstappen because “he’s been there, done that.” Yes, he’s in a hole right now in the standings, but the season is so young that we’re not overly worried about it. The Red Bull driver has championship DNA and we’re sticking with that in our futures bet!
How To Bet On Formula 1 In 2022?
There are still 19 races left in the 2022 season. That means 19 different betting opportunities to make money off of. To bet on Formula 1 in 2022, visit one of the bookmakers underneath. The table lists the “best of the best” bookies as well as unbiased sportsbook reviews. So read around and pick one to be your go-to shop for F1 gambling.
The next F1 race is Sunday, May 8 in Miami — the first race of its kind here. Bets are already available for the Miami Grand Prix at sportsbooks so don’t miss this opportunity!
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