After F1’s last racing weekend, and the first one Down Under in a while, Leclerc took a rare and commanding ‘Grand Slam’ win while Max’s car woes returned in full force.
Then, you would think our F1 betting tips should see Charles comfortably winning the upcoming Emilia-Romagna GP. While that’s the most likely scenario, we expect Red Bull to fight for the win as they avoid another costly DNF for their championship contender.
If you are betting on the Formula 1 Italian GP, you should definitely read our predictions as we explore the most likely outcomes of the season’s first ‘Sprint’ weekend.
2022 Italian GP Odds
The F1 Rolex Gran Premio Dell’Emilia-Romagna 2022 starts on the 22nd of April, 2022, at the historic Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari—also known as Imola and the home of the former San Marino GP to F1’s longstanding fans.
The current odds for the outright winner as put forward by the biggest UK betting houses are outlined below:
Tip 1: Ferrari Looking at a 1–2 Finish
Charles is in excellent form, his confidence, along with his car, skyrocketing, and it’s difficult to see him missing out on his third win out of 4 races. Moreover, his Spanish teammate just signed a new lucrative deal until 2024, so he definitely has something to prove.
Seeing as how both the Ferrari cars and their drivers check off all the boxes for an easy win in their home race, we believe the most likely outcome this coming 24th of April is two red suits on the top of the podium and an extended Ferrari lead in both the WCC and the WDC.
Tip 2: Red Bull and Max to Bounce Back
Max’s title defence started well enough with a fierce exchange of the leading position in Bahrain, but he failed to finish the race. Then, after his masterful Jeddah win, we thought Red Bull’s troubles were behind them, but Australia’s DNF finish proved that wrong.
His failure to secure points at two of this season’s three races means the Dutchman is trailing the leader by 46 points, and he is eager to start chipping away at that deficit in Imola by relying on his past experiences as both a ‘Sprint’ winner and an Imola winner.
Ultimately, we hope and believe Max’s pure talent and aggressive driving style will be behind his resurgence at Imola. Still, we see him contending with Carlos for P2 unless his Sunday race is blessed by lucky rain—racing conditions in which he excels.
Tip 3: Mercedes to Struggle at Imola
Despite sitting second in the championship, Mercedes has been scoring points due to Red Bull’s failures instead of their performance and reliability. Not to take anything away from the eight-time WCC winners, they are set to drop points should RBR fix their problems.
Will that happen this upcoming weekend, or will Mercedes finally recover the stellar form that helped them achieve unprecedented success this last decade?
Well, the team from Brackley was hoping to start turning things around by the fourth race weekend, but the team admits that making that crucial step during a ‘Sprint’ weekend would be difficult due to the lack of practice room, as F1 is running one mini and one full race.
So, after Red Bull’s failure in Australia, their team worked hard to avoid another difficult weekend. Also, seeing as how both McLarens had a very decent finish in Australia, we cannot see a Silver Arrow past P6, even under the most auspicious circumstances.
Bonus Tip: Alonso to Show a Champion’s Mettle
You might think we’re crazy to back Alonso for a finish in the points in Imola, but the main reason behind his lack of results is a string of unlucky circumstances and car reliability issues.
This ex-champion amazed us with a superb run in Q3 at Albert Park and was about to start at the front of the grid before going off track due to an unfortunate gearbox issue.
This time around, the team are hoping their mechanical problems have been resolved, and Alonso’s winning talents will finally see him pushing through to the top of the pack.
Time to Place That Bet
Considering the reliability and the sheer speed of 2022’s Ferrari car, our F1 betting tips predict that ‘The Prancing Horse’ is set to dominate their home Grand Prix. However, one factor that should not be disregarded is Max’s expertise in driving the perfect rain race, and with the weather uncertainty we are expecting this weekend, he might even get his second 2022 win.
If you don’t know how to bet on F1, make sure you check out our guide on Formula 1 betting.