F1 Tips:
#WhatOddsPaddy – Max Verstappen to Win the Race & Charles Leclerc to Finish on the Podium
Points Finish – Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change
Konnichiwa! Get ready for another early start as the Formula 1 circus heads to Japan this weekend.
It’s the first time the teams have taken to the track since last month’s dramatic Australian Grand Prix when Max Verstappen’s hopes of an all-conquering season (literally) blew up as his brakes caught fire in the early exchanges at Albert Park.
Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez failed to keep the team’s winning start to the campaign going as damage to his car’s floor meant he finished a long way behind race winner Carlos Sainz, who led home a 1-2 for Ferrari.
We don’t want to scare away the possibility of championship battles so we’ll whisper it quietly but the Scuderia look capable of bringing the fight to the reigning constructors’ kings.
Verstappen will, no doubt, be eager to bounce back with a dominant display, however, and the Dutchman has won the last two editions of the Japanese Grand Prix so you would be a brave soul to bet against him.
I’ve run the rule over Paddy Power’s odds for the Japanese Grand Prix and picked out a couple of fancies. Let’s get into gear and head on over!
Japanese Grand Prix
Qualifying: Saturday 7am
Race: Sunday 6am
TV: Sky Sports F1
#WhatOddsPaddy – Max Verstappen to Win the Race & Charles Leclerc to Finish on the Podium
Suzuka and Max Verstappen are a match made in heaven. It is quite clearly a track that the Dutchman enjoys as he has converted pole position into race success in the last two editions of the Japanese Grand Prix.
The technical problem that caused the Dutchman to retire in Australia is a nagging concern but Red Bull are confident of returning to their dominant best this weekend.
It is no surprise that Ferrari have emerged as the best of the rest and they look proper contenders for the constructors’ title as Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc have started the season in fine form.
Sergio Perez’s solid-but-unspectacular record at Suzuka should give the Scuderia hope that Sainz and Leclerc can beat their Red Bull rival to the podium – and I rate the latter as the more likely of the pair to place in the top three as he has finished ahead of his team-mate in the last two years in Japan.
Points Finish – Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda
Fernando Alonso has enjoyed a decent start to the season, bagging a healthy haul of points in all three races, and he would be the best of the rest behind the Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren drivers had he not been hit with a harsh 20-second penalty for ‘potentially dangerous driving’ in Australia.
As a two-time winner of the Japanese Grand Prix, the veteran Spaniard is well versed in the intricacies of the Suzuka circuit and has scored points in more than half of his F1 career starts here.
The home hero, Yuki Tsunoda, has failed to score in two starts at the track but he heads into the race in brilliant form after delivering one of the best drives of his career when finishing seventh in Australia last time out.
While RB are battling Haas for the status of sixth best on the grid in the early weeks of the season, Tsuonda has the pace over one lap – his qualifying record in 2024 reads 11/9/8 – to reach Q3 and a strong Saturday would set him up nicely to score points for the second race in a row.
- A Double with these selections pays at approximately 2/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD TO YOUR BETSLIP.
Japanese Grand Prix Tips:
#WhatOddsPaddy – Max Verstappen to Win the Race & Charles Leclerc to Finish on the Podium
Points Finish – Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change
Read More on F1
- Paddy Power News is here to give you a steer on the best Formula 1 tips
- F1 2024 calendar, race schedule, teams and driver line-ups
- F1 2024 season predictions including a 9/1 Charles Leclerc bet
- Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari: Paddy Power’s betting specials for 2025 F1 season
The Paddy Power Guide To Safer Gambling – Everything You Need To Know
