Hamilton starts on Sprint pole at Silverstone as Ferrari's pace turns heads, creating intriguing betting value for the Sprint and Sunday's Grand Prix
In Formula 1 news, all eyes are on a surging Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari going into the British Grand Prix this weekend, at Silverstone Circuit, with two competitions – tomorrow’s Sprint Race (drivers race for championship points), and Sunday’s Grand Prix (52 laps).
Today saw Practice One for the Grand Prix, the only practice session of the weekend, and Sprint Qualifying, which sets the grid for tomorrow’s Sprint Race.
Hamilton, coming off a fifth place showing last weekend in Austria, racing on his home circuit, secured pole position for that, by just 0.011s from Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.
The seven-time World Champion now sits just 46 points (125) behind Antonelli (171) and Antonelli’s Mercedes teammate George Russell (131).
Hamilton posted a 1m 28.376s lap, fractionally quicker than Antonelli, followed by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari, then George Russell at P5.
In F1 betting at Betway, Hamilton is -154 to win the Sprint Race, followed by Antonelli (+190), Verstappen (+650), Russell (+1600) and Leclerc (+1800).
“Very surprised, very surprised,” said Russell today, per ESPN, coming off his win last weekend in Austria. “They [Ferrari] have been on the back foot with power unit and energy management, but here they look the best at the moment. We have always known they have a great chassis. Some things aren’t quite making sense.
“If I were to have predicted, I would have said Ferrari fast last weekend and us to be quick this week. But Ferrari has had the upper hand all day. Relative lap time just not really there. We need to understand for tomorrow, the more important day.”
That’s notable for sports bettors.
For Sunday’s British Grand Prix, Hamilton is the betting favorite at +140, followed by Antonelli at +160, Russell at +500, Verstappen at +650, and Leclerc at +1400.
Tomorrow’s Sprint Race is 7 a.m. EST, with Qualifying for Sunday’s race starting at 11 a.m. EST.
The British Grand Prix on Sunday starts at 10 a.m. EST.
In the Drivers’ Championship, up to eight points are up for grabs in tomorrow’s Sprint.
Current weather forecasts call for a dry weekend. Silverstone Circuit is one of Formula 1’s fastest and most historic venues. For sports bettors, Silverstone often produces more overtaking than many modern Formula 1 tracks because of its long straights and multiple DRS (Drag Reduction System) zones, making race strategy, tire degradation and safety cars especially important.
That means live betting opportunities can be plentiful, with fortunes changing through pit-stop timing, changing weather and late-race passes.
For bettors, is Ferrari’s pace genuine over a race distance? Has Ferrari found a setup well suited to Silverstone’s high-speed corners? If Hamilton converts the Sprint pole into a strong Sprint result, his odds for Sunday’s Grand Prix will shorten even more.
Hamilton to win the Sprint is my play, with the enormous home support.
Silverstone has been Hamilton’s best circuit over the years, and with Ferrari looking competitive on a high-speed track, I am also looking at Hamilton to finish of Sunday’s podium (-334 at Betway), and Hamilton with the Fastest Lap (+275).
