The new F1 season kicked off last weekend in Bahrain and there was a familiar face at the front of the pack. Max Verstappen raced off into the distance and never looked back, securing his first win of the season while his teammate rallied to finish 2nd ahead of Charles Leclerc. What will this weekend’s race hold?
How to watch F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
When: Saturday, March 9th, 12PM EST
Where: Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Saudi Arabia
How: ESPN, F1TV, Sky Sports F1
The 2024 F1 races will be broadcast on ESPN & ESPN+, while both practice sessions and Qualifying sessions will be shown on ESPN2. Fans can also subscribe to F1TV for an unrivaled viewing experience.
F1 Saudi Arabian GP betting odds
| Max Verstappen | -450 |
| Sergio Perez | +900 |
| Charles Leclerc | +1200 |
| Carlos Sainz | +1800 |
| Lewis Hamilton | +2000 |
| Lando Norris | +2800 |
| George Russell | +3500 |
| Oscar Piastri | +5000 |
Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP preview
The opening week of the season didn’t hold too much in the way of surprises up front, although some interesting stories developed throughout the race.
Perhaps the most interesting was Carlos Sainz deciding to turn into prime Valterri Bottas and deciding to take his future into his own hands. It’s clear he isn’t going to take a backseat to Leclerc voluntarily this season, which should give bettors some upside when backing the Spaniard.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull remain unchallenged at the top of the Formula 1 totem pole, but the rest of the Grid does look far more compact than it did last season. Mercedes look much closer to the front of the grid than they did last season and while fighting for victories might be hoping for too much too soon, they should be in the mix for plenty of podiums and top-5 finishes.
If you want to bet on a couple of wildcards this weekend, look no further than the McLaren boys. They were highly optimistic in preseason testing and the nature of this circuit fits the McLaren’s much better than the sharp corners of Bahrain. They should thrive in a higher-speed setting and with both Drivers sitting at around -330/-350 for a top-6 finish, there is some value on both.
Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP betting pick
I really like the idea of a Daniel Ricciardo top-6 finish at +1100. The Visa Cash App RB cars finished 13th and 14th last week, but Jeddah is a track that can often throw up Safety Cars and shock retirements due to its narrow and high-speed nature. Tsunoda finished 11th here last year and since then, Alpine have dropped off the pace massively and we haven’t seen what Haas can do in a setting like this. It’s a lotto ticket, but I feel like it’s a good one to have in your back pocket if you don’t want to back someone to outshine Verstappen in the race.
If you did want to, Sergio Perez won the 2023 race here and is +900 to win again. Those are sensational odds for a driver in the same machinery as Max Verstappen.
Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP betting offers
Ali Haider, Pool Photo via AP
