US Grand Prix Predictions: Title charge to resume for lively Lando
Formula 1 returns after a four-week break this weekend, and it marks the start of a hectic period for the 10 teams and 20 drivers.
This weekend’s US Grand Prix - the first of three Sprint weekends in the next five races - marks the start of an eight-week period in which there are six Grands Prix, with two triple-headers separated by a three-week break between the Brazilian Grand Prix and the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
It also marks the beginning of a four-race tour around the Americas, starting in Austin at the Circuit of the Americas before heading south to Mexico and Brazil and then back to Nevada for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Tip 1 - Lando Norris to win @ 9/10
After a four-week break and with six races in the next eight weeks, most teams are expected to bring upgrades to the Circuit of the Americas, but the level of dominance that McLaren showed before the hiatus can make it tough for Red Bull to reduce their performance deficit and that should pave the way for Lando Norris to continue his title challenge.
Norris was dominant in Singapore last time out, taking pole position before going on to lead every lap in the Grand Prix, eventually winning by almost 21 seconds.
The Marina Bay Circuit is something of an outlier track, but the papaya team have had a driver on the top step of the podium in four of the last six races and have secured nine podiums from a possible 12 in that period.
The 24-year-old Bristolian has won two of the last four Grands Prix, taking pole position in three of them and also putting in the fastest lap in three of them. With the team confirming that he will get the rub of the green ahead of Oscar Piastri when it comes to team orders as McLaren look for a double title win, Norris is a justified favourite for the win this weekend.
Norris finished second to Max Verstappen here last year but could take the top spot for the fourth time this season on Sunday.
Tip 2 - Guanyu Zhou to beat Valtteri Bottas @ 11/5
The Kick Sauber-Ferrari team may be the only constructor yet to score a point in the 2024 season, but Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou are fighting for their future in the sport and both will be trying to up their game for the remainder of the season.
Despite many rating the former Silver Arrows driver Bottas much higher than his Chinese teammate, the Finn has only finished ahead of his teammate in 10 of the 16 races this season and both drivers have an average race position of 16.06.
Zhou has finished ahead of Bottas in each of the last two Grands Prix and he finished ahead of him in the 2022 US Grand Prix, while last year he was only one position off the 35-year-old.
Checkout odds and markets for the US Grand Prix in our dedicated F1 betting section.
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