Triple Crown Chase Makes Alonso A Good Bet On The Indy 500
Posted: May 23, 2017
Updated: October 4, 2017
This weekend the boys over at Formula One will be driving the most famous race on the calendar, the Monaco Grand Prix, but one of the best known names in the sport won’t be there, he’ll be the other side of the Atlantic competing in the Indianapolis 500 in pursuit of the second win he needs to keep his dreams of winning the triple crown of motor racing alive. The question is, should you back Fernando Alonso to get the job done at Bet365 or is he destined to fall short?
2017 Indianapolis 500
• Scott Dixon – 6/1
• F. Alonso – 6/1
• Will Power – 8/1
• J Newgarden – 10/1
• M Andretti – 11/1
• Takuma Sato – 11/1
• H Castroneves – 11/1
• J P Montoya – 12/1
• Tony Kanaan – 12/1
• S Pagenaud – 12/1
Fernando Alonso missing the Monaco Grand Prix is, if we’re honest, a bit of a kick in the teeth for Formula One. A high profile driver acknowledging that his team has no hope of even making participation worthwhile says way too much about the stratified nature of the sport and how far too many drivers are racing for seventh place at best. That he’s decided instead to bet on the Indy 500 is just the icing on the cake, although as a previous winner at Monaco he has more reasons than most.
The Triple Crown of Motorsport is actually wholly unofficial, and rather than requiring a driver to win three particular events in a season allows them their entire career in which to achieve it. The three events? The Formula One World Championship, The Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours Of Le Mans, arguably the top tier trio and easily recognizable by anyone who likes the smell of hydrocarbons when they place a bet on sports in the US, and Alonso’s run at this title makes him a good bet on the Indy 500 this weekend.
Can You Hear The Drums Fernando?
He’s had the Formula One qualification in the bag since 2005 when he became World Champion with Renault, a feat he repeated the very next year, and there’s still plenty of time for the thirty five year old to race at Le Mans which favors the more experienced and mature driver, so right now the challenge for him is to get that win at Indianapolis, and if you’re going to hit up the likes of Bet365 to bet on the Indy 500 you could do far worse than wager on his desire to win boosting his chances on the track.
Qualifying in fifth place, that’s the center of the second row, he’s looked impressive for a driver porting himself over from a different car, set up and race type, and with his experience and talent he really is a good bet on the Indy 500, and if you’re going to sidle around US gambling laws to get online and wager at sites like Bet365 you’ll find he’s attracting quite short odds for the new boy on the block, although that could be the bookies romanticism at play again, something they’re all too often guilty of allowing.
Online Bookies Like Bet365 Stoke Triple Crown Chances
The Indy 500
• Indianapolis Motor Speedway
• Laps – 200
• Distance – 805km
• Surface – Asphalt
• Turns – 4 (Left hand track)
• Cars – 33
• Qualification speed – 232.5mph
If you’ve bet on the Indy 500 before you’re probably aware of its history, dating all the way back to 1911, the oval in Speedway as famous as any track anywhere, and with those banked corners it promotes velocity above all else, something pole position qualifier Scott Dixon proved as the Kiwi’s car hit 232.5 mph this year, the fastest in some 21 years, and he too is a good bet on the Indy 500 this year, with both he and Alonso sharing 6/1 odds to win at online bookmakers like Bet365 and its ilk.
Will Power, still ranked second most likely to win the Indy Championship this year at 3/1, gets a rather unfair 8/1 to take the win on the 28th, with Pagenaud the 7/5 championship favorite only able to garner a scant 12/1 to win this, the most prestigious event of the season. This is a testament to Alonso’s influence with most of the motorsport world hoping he’ll win and be just one Le Mans victory from being the 14th triple crown winner, and if you’re in the US gambling news on Monday will be of anyone else winning, you’re probably more hard-hearted than need be.