After an eventful Belgian Grand Prix, Formula One’s finest drivers will take to the circuit again on Sunday September 5th in Zandvoort, Netherlands for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Alfa Romeo’s legendary Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen announced during the days preceding the event that he has tested positive for coronavirus and would not be participating in the race.
He has since been replaced by reserve driver Robert Kubica. Here is a quick preview of the top five drivers and tips from our in-house experts at NetBet.
Dutch driver Max Verstappen would be driving in front of a largely partisan crowd in his native Netherlands. The Red Bull driver won the Belgian Grand Prix with a time of 3:27.071 to earn 12.5 points.
He has also claimed the pole position in the Dutch Grand Prix after finishing fastest in the qualifying race.
No Dutch driver has ever won this event, but Verstappen will attack the race from pole position on its return after 35 years away.
Verstappen started the race brilliantly and surged ahead of his competitors to finish 0.038 seconds ahead of top-ranked Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
The Dutch fans were in full voice as they cheered Verstappen on in the qualifying race. Verstappen is the outright favourite to pick up the win, and has been given 1.66 odds. He was also given 1.22 odds of earning a podium finish.
Hamilton is still leading the overall table for the season, despite having won two races less than Verstappen. The British driver completed only one lap during the practice race on Friday before pulling up due to an issue with his car.
Hamilton finished the Belgian Grand Prix in third place, 2.601 seconds behind winner Verstappen. He remains one of the outright favourites to win the race, despite not winning any race since the British Grand Prix in July. He faces a hostile crowd that would evidently be behind their own, Verstappen, in the Netherlands.
Hamilton was roundly booed during his interview after the qualifying race in which he came second. He struggled at the beginning of the race before a brilliant final lap almost saw him claim pole position in Zandvoort ahead of Verstappen. The British driver has been given 2.45 odds of winning the race, and 1.22 odds of finishing on the podium.
Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas finished the qualifying race in third place with a time of 1:09.222. The Finnish driver currently sits in fourth place on the overall standings with zero wins to his name.
He stands an outside chance of picking up the win at the Dutch Grand Prix and has been given 15.00 odds of winning the race. He has also been given 1.50 odds of finishing on the podium.
Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly finished in fourth place in the qualifying race with a time of 1:09.478. The Frenchman is in ninth place on the overall standings and has been given 34.00 odds of winning the race.
He was also given 4.50 odds of ending up on the podium.
Ferrari driver Charles LeClerc was fastest in the second practice session but could only finish in fifth place in the qualifying race. He has been given 29.00 odds of winning the race and 4.00 odds of finishing on the podium.