After a weekend off, the Formula 1 calendar takes us to Qatar for just the second-ever F1 Qatar Grand Prix.
Much like we saw at Suzuka, this circuit for Sunday's Qatar Grand Prix (1 p.m. ET, ESPN) has a lot of fast- to medium-speed corners that will make grip of the utmost importance. Also important will be the ability to manage tire degradation.
Qatar is a sprint race weekend, so points will be doled out for both the sprint race on Saturday (1:30 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS) as well as the regular grand prix on Sunday. This gives Max Verstappen two chances to lock up the F1 Drivers World Championship. To clinch another title on Saturday, Verstappen will need to finish at least sixth in the sprint race, which is certainly likely.
The more interesting battle is in the next tier of teams. Just 20 points separate Mercedes and Ferrari for second place while Aston Martin and McLaren still trail out of reach.
McLaren has been making a push during the back half of this season to climb back into the race and very well may have a shot at beating a couple of these teams if they can keep their strong form going.
Let's look at some F1 Qatar Grand Prix odds and bets for the race, which will go head-to-head with the NFL's early games on Sunday.
F1 Qatar Grand Prix Picks
Lando Norris Podium
Lando Norris has continually found himself on the podium in recent races. This team has been on fire since Silverstone, and Norris has wound up on the podium in four of his last seven races. This includes the last two race weekends, when Lando was able to finish second both times.
Qatar will provide another opportunity for McLaren to showcase their strength in medium-speed corners, but competing with Red Bull will be a challenge as usual. I think Norris will get his first career F1 win at some point, but I am not going to be the one to bet on that when Verstappen has been this dominant.
Instead, I like going back to the well and taking Norris to once again claim a podium position as McLaren should be the best non-Red Bull team this weekend.
The Pick: Lando Norris Podium Finish (-140 at DraftKings)
Alex Albon vs. Lance Stroll
This season Alex Albon has been impressive as he continues to get the most out of his Williams machine. Qatar is not a track for which his car will be perfectly suited, but the long straight will give Albon a chance to display the strengths of the FW45.
In this matchup, Albon will be facing off against Lance Stroll. Aston Martin, and especially Stroll, have struggled mightily lately. Their car has excess drag that will hurt them a lot on the straightaways in Qatar.
The last time that Stroll finished higher in a race than Albon was in Round 12 at Spa in July. Since then, Williams has definitely made strides in performance while Aston Martin has fallen toward the back of the pack.
I think that this line is based on Aston Martin’s early-season success and not the current form of their car. Right now, Williams has been the faster team, and Albon is the better driver, so I like backing Albon to get it done here. If you're net at BetMGM, make sure to bet Alex Albon after checking out the latestBetMGM bonus code.
The Pick: Alex Albon over Lance Stroll (-135 at BetMGM)
Pierre Gasly Sprint Shootout Misprice
It seems to me that there is a mistake in this line at DraftKings. When looking at the odds for the F1 Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday, Albon is the driver with the top chance to be the race winner without the top five teams. This makes sense as he is tightly followed by the two Alpine drivers, who are both +250.
However, when looking at the same bet at the same book for the sprint race, Gasly is all the way down at +650, with the fifth-highest odds. This does not seem to make much sense to me as I think Alpine should be pretty competitive in this race among the mid-pack teams.
This isn’t a slam-dunk bet, but Gasly will be competitive to hit this and should be much lower than +650 here.
The Pick: Pierre Gasly Sprint Shootout Winner without Red Bull, McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari, and Aston Martin (+650 at DraftKings)
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