British Grand Prix Betting Tips & Preview – Sunday 8th July 2018

Last weekend brought our fourth different winner of a Formula 1 race this season. Race number 10 in Austria was claimed by Max Verstappen, who sits fifth in the Drivers’ Championship standings following a strong display last time out. The race saw another shift at the summit, as Sebastian Vettel moved back in front as the championship leader.

Vettel may not have claimed a key victory in Austria, but he did well enough to secure first place in the biggest race of all. He’s now a point clear of Lewis Hamilton in the standings, with problems growing at Mercedes. Ahead of the champion’s home Grand Prix, this is a huge chance for Vettel and Ferrari to pile on top of those problems.

Race Info

Formula 1 returns to England this weekend, and it’s a perfect chance for home favourite Hamilton. He’s struggling and with a packed July ahead that needs to stop but he returns back to his home country this weekend. However, could the pressure of the home crowd be a problem? There’s certainly going to be an even bigger target on his back, as a win here would be huge for one of Hamilton’s rivals.

Schedule

Last Season's Result (2017)

Hamilton came away with maximum points at his last home race, as Mercedes completed a 1-2 finish at Silverstone. However, that strong display feels like a long time ago now, when you look at how the pair have struggled this term. Both Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas retired early in Austria last weekend, and that’s left the Silver Arrows struggling. Getting back to their form from mid-2017 is going to be tough, but that would settle the title race if they could do it.

This race wasn’t just a standout for Mercedes last season. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo managed to secure a top five finish at Silverstone, despite starting from 19th place on the grid. That took him a place shy of Verstappen, and the Red Bull duo ended up with respectable finishes. However, they’ve been more impressive this term, so could they step up and secure a podium place ahead of an open 2018 edition of the British GP?

Race News: Mercedes Woes Boost Ferrari

A tough weekend in Austria has left a lot of pressure on Mercedes, who need a response to their up-and-down season so far. After years of dominance, we’re now seeing weaknesses in the Silver Arrows. With Ferrari on their way back up, those weaknesses are becoming a huge factor in the season. On top of that, the problems that Mercedes can’t fix look worse when Ferrari are busy preparing for the 2019 campaign. They have Sauber’s Charles Leclerc lined up to join, as they look to replace Kimi Raikkonen.

The pressure is now coming from within Mercedes, as Hamilton looked to make his displeasure clear. He wasn’t ready to let his team off the hook, after demanding bulletproof reliability from his side ahead of a key British Grand Prix. That’s obviously not something easy to introduce during the busiest spell on the F1 calendar, as they don’t exactly have the time.

Analysis: Can Mercedes Bounce Back?

Hamilton said Austria was his worst weekend in a long time, and that is probably fair. They really struggled in a key contest and now there’s little momentum behind them going into Silverstone this weekend. They’ve even slipped off the top of the Constructors’ Championship, and this weekend offers a chance for Ferrari to step up their game in that regard.

While Ferrari are busy improving, they are also marching towards success this season. They’ll be eyeing up the size of the scalp on offer, as they try to deliver a hammer blow. Beat Hamilton at his own home race and that could be a victory which changes the title battle completely. Ferrari aren’t going to get a better opportunity to turn the Championship campaign on its head.

Final Verdict: Vettel To Win

We’re going against Hamilton’s string of wins in the UK, with Vettel looking massively priced at 7/2 ahead of this race. He’s not struggling that much, and strong recovery drives in recent weeks have proven Vettel’s talent. He is more than capable of seeing off Hamilton, and with so much on offer this weekend we see it playing out that way. We’re backing Vettel for first place, where he’s likely to be joined on the podium by Verstappen. His win last weekend makes it four podium spots in five races, so the Red Bull man is value for a top three place at 6/4.