Australian Grand Prix Betting Tips: Norris to make fast start

The F1 season begins in Australia for the first time in six years this weekend and a fascinating campaign is in prospect.

The Aussie event was the sport's traditional curtain-raiser but had been replaced by Bahrain in recent seasons.

The Melbourne event has been the third round on the calendar in the last three seasons and has produced different winners in each of the last five runnings, with Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz all successful.

Last year's race saw a brave drive from Sainz, who took victory after missing the previous race due to an appendectomy, while 2023 winner Verstappen claimed pole but retired after only three laps with brake problems.

McLaren's Lando Norris is favourite to win this year after impressing in pre-season testing as he looks to launch his bid for a first world championship win in style.

Tip 1 - Lando Norris to win the race @ 6/4

Norris is a clear favourite to begin the year with a win and he looks capable of adding to the list of new winners of the Australian round.

The Briton has had some solid results at the track despite never going there with a realistic chance of winning - last year's race came well before McLaren made a major upgrade to their car in Miami.

Norris qualified fourth and finished fifth at Albert Park in 2022, which was his second-best result in the first half of the season, while in 2023 he was sixth after failing to score a point in the first two races of the year.

Last season, the McLaren man took his first podium of the year with third place after finishing no better than sixth in the first two rounds, so the signs are good that he will be able to score a first Australian success if his car is as strong as expected.

Norris will by no means be supported by all McLaren fans in Melbourne as his team-mate Oscar Piastri was born in the city and would be a hugely popular winner.

Piastri has finished eighth and fourth in the first two home races of his career and can target his first Aussie podium, but his team-mate looks the better bet for the race victory.

Ferrari have won two of the last three Australian races but it has never been one of Lewis Hamilton's favourite venues. He has won there twice, in 2008 and 2015, but that puts it a long way down his list of most successful tracks.

Leclerc and Verstappen should both be in contention - Verstappen took pole last year but was quickly overtaken by Sainz in the race as he battled a brake problem - but McLaren look the team to beat at the start of the season.

Tip 2 - George Russell podium finish (1-3) @ 2/1

George Russell often shows up well on street circuits and the British driver can establish himself as the new Mercedes team leader by taking a podium in the first race since Hamilton left the team.

Russell is now partnered by Italian teenager Andrea Kimi Antonelli and will be keen to make it clear he is the top dog in the team for the time being at least.

The King's Lynn driver finished third in Australia in 2022 from sixth on the grid. The following year he qualified on the front row and led the race before retiring with an engine issue.

Last season he qualified seventh, four places ahead of Hamilton as Mercedes struggled, and was fighting for sixth when crashing on the last lap.

One of Russell's two wins last season came on the street circuit in Las Vegas and he could secure another top-three finish in Australia.

Tip 3 - Carlos Sainz top-six finish @ 4/1

Carlos Sainz was forced to move further down the grid to Williams to accommodate Hamilton's arrival at Ferrari but he has moved to a progressive outfit and could show up well on his debut for the British team.

Sainz is adept at adjusting to new surroundings having previously raced for Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren and Ferrari and his new team showed promise in winter testing.

The Spaniard scored points on his first four visits to Melbourne and recorded a memorable success last season after qualifying second.

He's a big price to even make the top six in the opener but the first race of the year can be eventful and Sainz has the talent to make the most of any opportunities that arise.

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Odds correct at time of publication but subject to change