2023 Belgian Grand Prix Prediction: Formula 1 Betting Odds
The runaway leader on the F1 Drivers Standings after claiming the checkered flag in each of the past seven races, Verstappen has also won the past two editions of this race, capped by last year’s sensational drive to victory after being forced to start from the back of the pack.
Verstappen will once start from the front of the grid on Sunday, and is perched -414 favourite as a massive XXX favourite on the Belgian Grand Prix odds. In the wake of his third-place finish last week in Hungary, and his strong performance in qualifying that earned him the No. 3 spot on the grid, Sergio Perez is listed as +569 wager to earn his third win of the season. Lewis Hamilton sits third on the odds board at +1300 after finishing fourth in Friday morning’s qualifying session.
Belgian Grand Prix Race Time, Weather Forecast
Lights out at the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix is scheduled for 9:00am ET on Sunday morning at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. There is a risk of rain throughout the weekend, with the forecast for race time on Sunday calling for a chance of rain and temperatures hovering in the mid-teens Celsius or low-60s Fahrenheit.
Perez on the Rebound
While Max Verstappen has set himself apart from the rest of this year’s F1 class by winning nine of this season’s first 11 races, it has been much more of a roller coaster ride for his Red Bull Racing teammate Sergio Perez. After threatening to challenge Verstappen for the top of the standings with four top two finishes in the first five races of the season including wins in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan, “Checo” struggled while failing to reach the third round of qualifying in five straight outings.
Perez turned things in the right direction by qualifying ninth last week in Hungary, but it was his vintage form on the track that earned him Driver of the Day honours while finishing third for the second time in three outings. The 33-year-old showed both pace and lots of aggressive driving while climbing into a podium spot, which bodes well as he returns to Belgium, where he finished second to Verstappen last season.
Expecting Perez to snap Verstappen’s current win streak is a big ask. However, Checo is a solid +400 value bet to record fastest lap, and his strong finish in qualifying also enhances the value of red Bull producing a double podium finish.
Can Aston Martin Halt Slide?
Fernando Alonso emerged as one of the big stories early on this season while enjoying a resurgence that powered him to a spot on the podium in six of the first eight races of the season. However, with principal rivals Mercedes and McLaren both enjoying the benefit of recent technical upgrades, both Alonso and his teammate Canadian Lance Stroll have steadily fallen off the pace. Alonso and Stroll have failed to crack the top six in two straight outings, capped by ninth and 10th place finishes respectively in Hungary.
Alonso has not been shy about his concerns after Hungary, publicly admitting the team is struggling to keep pace with Red Bull, McLaren, and Mercedes. Alonso has also suggested that recent changes to tire specs may also be impacting the team.
Those concerns were evident in qualifying, with neither Aston Martin driver emerging as a a threat to seize the pole before ending the day with Alonso ninth and Stroll 10th. That does not bode well for Alonso this time around in Belgium, where he has either failed to finish or earn a point in eight of 16 previous appearances.
While the duo are a safe bet to produce a double points finish for Aston Martin, the +1000 odds of Aston Martin being the first to see a car retire are tough to ignore.
Predictions: Red Bull double podium finish (-175); Sergio Perez fastest lap (+400); Aston Martin first car retirement (+1000)
