F1 2019 French Grand Prix Odds, Predictions & Picks

Sebastian Vettel appeared to have won at the Canadian Grand Prix. However, he had an adventure that took him onto the Turn 3-4 grass. The rear of the car started to slide away, so Vettel had to open up his steering so that he would not go into a spin. He came back onto the track, but the grass on the tires caused a couple of slides. Lewis Hamilton was forced to brake, as it looked like Vettel was about to pin him against the wall. The race stewards added a five-second penalty to Vettel’s time, handing the win to Hamilton, and there is a rule about how to get back on track after a spin without doing so in front of oncoming vehicles. However, there is a bit of a controversy as Vettel did not cut Hamilton off intentionally. Either way, Mercedes won again. Can Ferrari finally end their drought in the 2019 French Grand Prix? We have your F1 odds for each driver as well as thoughts on this week’s Formula 1 race.

F1 2019 French Grand Prix Odds, Predictions & Picks

Who’s ready for some more practice action from sunny Paul Ricard then?#F1 #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/sDDIIUofAY

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 21, 2019

Driver Odds to Win the 2019 French Grand Prix

• Lewis Hamilton                                                                                                           4/6
• Valtteri Bottas                                                                                                             7/4
• Sebastian Vettel                                                                                                          8/1
• Charles Leclerc                                                                                                          11/1
• Max Verstappen                                                                                                          28/1
• Pierre Gasly                                                                                                                350/1
• Daniel Ricciardo, Nico Hulkenberg                                                                            1000/1
• Carlos Sainz, Kevin Magnussen, Romain Grosjean                                                  1500/1
• Lando Norris, Alexander Albon, Kimi Raikkonen, Daniil Kvyat, Sergio Perez          2000/1
• Lance Stroll                                                                                                                 2500/1
• Antonio Giovinazzi                                                                                                      3000/1
• George Russell, Robert Kubica                                                                                  4000/1

The Circuit Paul Ricard makes multiple demands in multiple areas, challenging drivers. The opening sector has a number of tight turns that take their toll on a car’s braking system. Maintaining agility while keeping balance and downforce is key in the first sector. Then comes the Mistral Straight and the Signes corner, which is quite fast, making power and aerodynamics crucial in the second sector. The toughest stop comes in Turn 8, which is the chicane in the Mistral, dropping from about 200 mph to 120 mph in less than two seconds. This year has been a clean sweep for Mercedes, with seven wins in seven races. If Sebastian Vettel won the French Grand Prix and both Mercedes cars crashed and were unable to finish, Vettel would still trail Valtteri Bottas by eight points and Hamilton by 37. However, Mercedes showed some cracks last week. Bottas’ car had a problem with the fuel system during practice, and Hamilton’s car developed a leak in the hydraulic system. Mercedes did not have as much pace as Ferrari down the straightaways in Canada, and the French rouse is more designed to reward speed. With that said, the corners in France have more variety, requiring versatility at different speed levels, so Mercedes should be able to compensate for a slight lack of speed down the straights, given their edge in grip and downforce. Ferrari has had a problem generating downforce, which means that grip and traction are issues, particularly out of corners that require slow speed, which the French course features. Red Bull is featuring its second engine upgrade in 2019 in France, the purpose of which is to bring more power out of the unit. This is a fast upgrade, coming just a couple of races after the first one. The alterations focus on the turbocharger and the ICE and increase overall power. Can Red Bull deliver on that significant value you can get from their drivers? Or is this basically a three-man race as the odds indicate? Given the value that you can get on Vettel and Leclerc, putting money on Ferrari might make some sense given the advantages they showed in Canada. You don’t get much value out of Hamilton, and Bottas is not winning enough for Mercedes to earn that value that he has. I might put Hamilton, Vettel and Leclerc on my cards. Until someone breaks Mercedes’ hammerlock on the top of the podium, though, the race betting in Formula 1 will not offer significant value.