The opening race of the new Formula 1 season takes place on Saturday with the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix. Max Verstappen (-325) is the favorite, and in our latest Formula 1 betting picks, we tell you if the three-times Drivers’ Championship winner will get his season off to a winning start.
Preseason testing is over, and the real business gets underway in Sakhir this week. Testing didn’t provide any shocks. It confirmed that Red Bull is still the team to beat. But it did give us an insight into who the second strongest team will be, and it turned out to be Ferrari.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz stated they are happier with the car than last year. The latter also comfortably outpaced his No.2 Red Bull rival, Sergio Perez. Ferrari posted the fastest time in testing. But before anybody starts getting too carried away, it’s widely believed that Red Bull was holding back, running the car with heavy fuel loads and focussing more on long runs.
One area of significant progress Ferrari can point to is the performance of their tires. Tire degradation was a serious problem last year. But when asked about it ahead of the 2024 season, team principal Fred Vasseur stated that the performance this year compared to last is on another planet.
We’ve been here before with the legendary Italian team, though. In 2022, we expected Leclerc and Sainz to challenge Red Bull, and they fell away with a whimper. But with Lewis Hamilton slated to drive for them in 2025, the F1 giants need to get their act together.
So, will we see an improved performance from Ferrari on and off the circuit? And are they destined to run Red Bull closer in 2024?
First up, the Bahrain Grand Prix is taking place on Saturday, not the usual Sunday. Second, the best Formula 1 betting sites still make Max Verstappen their odds-on favorite. To get his 2024 season off to a winning start, Verstappen is -325 to win the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Second in the betting is the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc at +1000. Despite Red Bull being expected to be faster, the Monégasque driver is favored to finish ahead of Sergio Perez, who is the third favorite at +1400. Completing a Red Bull/Ferrari betting lockout of the first two rows on the grid is Carlos Sainz, who is fourth favorite at +1600.
Preseason testing also indicated who will be the most competitive out of Mercedes and the McLaren. It is widely accepted that the Silver Arrows of Mercedes looked the stronger of the two. But that hasn’t stopped the best F1 sportsbooks from pricing Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris at +2000.
Full 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix betting can be found on our Las Vegas odds table. We have taken the odds from the best sportsbooks for Formula 1 betting.
| Drivers |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Verstappen | -325 | -325 | -325 |
| Charles Leclerc | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
| Sergio Perez | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Carlos Sainz | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
| Lewis Hamilton | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Lando Norris | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
| George Russell | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Oscar Piastri | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Fernando Alonso | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Pierre Gasly | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Esteban Ocon | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Lance Stroll | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Alex Albon | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Yuki Tsunoda | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
| Kevin Magnussen | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
| Valtteri Bottas | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
| Nico Hulkenberg | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
| Logan Sargeant | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
| Guanyu Zhou | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
There’s no point beating around the bush on this one. We’re all expecting it to be a Red Bull procession again this season, with the only question being, how close can the others get to catching them?
But, is it possible that all the F1 experts could be wrong about testing, and Ferrari is the fastest team? Or maybe the Red Bulls aren’t as fast as we believe they are going to be?
All neutral F1 fans would love to see a competitive 2024. We want to see Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris competing with Max Verstappen. So, maybe naively, we go into the Bahrain Grand Prix full of optimism that at least one of the above might win a race for a change and make it a competitive season in 2024.
The chances are that all hopes will be diminished by the end of the race on Saturday, but we are hoping to be wrong on that front. Anyway, with plenty of anticipation, we are looking towards Charles Leclerc and his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz this weekend.
If the Italian team has sorted their tire degradation issues out, might they put the World Champion under pressure? And maybe Red Bull thinks they are so far ahead they might have taken their eye slightly off the ball. We hope so!
Keep your eyes on the prancing horse this weekend.
This is the difficult bit. Max Verstappen is likely to win. But with this being the first race of the season, is it worth taking a chance on backing him at odds of -325? Not for us!
So who do we back to win? Why not put some faith in Leclerc and Sainz? Drivers have egos. Leclerc will want to prove to his bosses that he is the No.1 driver when Lewis Hamilton arrives. Carlos Sainz will want to show them they were wrong to dump him for the Brit.
Red Bull are -400 to win the Bahrain Grand Prix. Ferrari is +600. Maybe Red Bull might slip up this weekend. If they do, we think Ferrari is the best-placed team to capitalize.
We make any Ferrari to win the Bahrain Grand Prix our betting pick.
See below the best online betting sites, where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
