The Day A Bet On Valtteri Bottas Stopped Being Insane

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Typically, a bet on Valtteri Bottas to win a Grand Prix would be futile. However, after his winning drive around Spielberg last weekend, perhaps he’s no longer Hamilton’s tail-gunner. With a double-header at the Red Bull Ring, they’re going to repeat the race on Sunday. This should prove interesting. Can Valtteri do it again? Online betting sites in Austria like Bet365 are currently giving him 5/2 to win the Styrian Grand Prix. That’s only a smidgeon behind Lewis.   

Everyone knew Mercedes was going to win, they just expected it to be Hamilton on top of the podium. Given his No.2 status at Mercedes, no one bet on Valtteri Bottas to actually win. Sure, he grabbed a nice pole on the grid, by mere hundredths of a second, but there was still a pecking order. Right? It seemed not. Valtteri may not have driven a particularly interesting race, but he won. Hamilton, on the other hand, attempted to inject some interest into the race, and they punished him for it.

No one ever bet on F1 decisions being uniform, but this seemed almost malicious. In the last frantic laps, stewards penalized Lewis Hamilton for an incident with Albon. So, he may have finished second but after his 5-second penalty, he was off the podium. Leclerc and Norris both seemed a little surprised to be there. Those who regularly bet on sports in Austria, and on F1 in particular, can imagine precisely how impressed the world Champion was with that decision.

Odds On Lewis Hamilton Still Shortest Despite Results

Valtteri led every lap of the race, man and machine in perfect if dull, unison. Meanwhile, the rest of the F1 circus was finding it tricky. Nine cars retired with technical problems, some within sight of the start, others in the sight of the finish. But one thing was clear. The Red Bull Ring on a hot day is no laughing matter. If the weather repeats itself there are going to be some very worried teams. Everyone except Mercedes really. So that bet on Valtteri Bottas isn’t quite so mad.

Styrian Grand Prix Winner

• Sebastian Vettel – 50/1
• Charles Leclerc – 40/1
• Alexander Albon – 25/1
• Max Verstappen – 10/3
• Valtteri Bottas – 5/2
• Lewis Hamilton – 5/6

After all, Ferrari are woeful with any fuel in the car, Renault keep melting down, Haas can’t stop and Red Bull have electronics issues. A bet on Valtteri Bottas in the Styrian Grand Prix is thus pretty much a 50/50 shot. Hamilton will be his only real competition. Of course, without that penalty who is to say what Mercedes might have asked him. They’ve had him pull over for Lewis before. They may again. Remember that when hitting up online sportsbook sites in Austria like Bet365. 

Bet On Valtteri Bottas In The Styrian Grand Prix At Bet365

Perhaps that’s why Lewis still gets the better of the odds. If not by much. At 5/6 he’s favorite, but at 5/2 a bet on Valtteri Bottas isn’t too far behind. Max Verstappen, who exited the race last weekend with electronics issues, gets 10/3. After which the bookies seem to believe no one else has a hope. Alexander Albon gets 25/1 and the Ferraris are 40/1 (Leclerc) and 50/1 (Vettel). Looking at the performance stats that’s fine, but did they notice the attrition rate last time round?

1st Team Retirement 

• No Retirements – 16/1
• Mercedes – 12/1
• Red Bull – 10/1
• Ferrari – 10/1
• Racing Point – 17/2
• Alfa Romeo – 15/2
• Alpha Tauri – 13/2
• Renault – 6/1
• Williams – 6/1
• Haas – 4/1

Fortunately, for all concerned, it’s going to be a lot cooler this weekend. This will please Renault a fair bit, but rain on Saturday could make qualifying a different sort of challenge. Mercedes now have the measure of the season and everyone else in it. Lewis will recover from his hiccup last time and zoom to victory. At least in theory. In practice, taking advantage of Austrian gambling laws to bet on Valtteri Bottas isn’t now a ridiculous wager. It just probably won’t be a winning one again this year. 

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We take a look at why despite a bet on Valtteri Bottas being fine in theory, in practice Lewis Hamilton is still the winning ticket.