The 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix will be the 11th round of the 2021 FIA F1 World Championship. It will be held on August 1, 2021, at the Hungaroring in Mogyorod, Hungary, and raced over 70 laps around the 2.722-mile race track.
This year’s race will be the 36th edition of the race and in its history, Lewis Hamilton’s 8 wins are the most by any driver. Among current drivers, only Sebastian Vetter is the other driver to win the race multiple times.
Hamilton won last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix, his third straight win at the Hungaroring. Max Verstappen finished second, also for the second consecutive year while Valtteri Bottas came in third. Hamilton also had last year’s fastest lap here and he also started from pole position.
Here are the Top 5 betting favorites to win the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix. These odds were taken from BetOnline as of 7/30/2021:
No doubt, Max Verstappen is favored to win this race. The 2021 F1 drivers standings leader is coming off a disastrous British Grand Prix where he was knocked out of the race after a first lap collision with Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen did start from pole but Hamilton’s win cut Max’s lead to just 8 points in the drivers’ standings.
Despite that debacle, Verstappen has won four out of the last six races of the season. His five races won this year are the most by any driver and he looks poised to end Lewis Hamilton’s run on top of the F1 world. Verstappen has finished second to Hamilton in each of the last two installments of the Hungarian Grand Prix and he has not placed worse than 5th in five out of his last six trips to the Hungaroring.
After Max Verstappen appeared to have taken control of the season, Lewis Hamilton bounced back with a win in his hometown race at Silverstone. It wasn’t the kind of win that he would’ve wanted because Verstappen was ousted from the race due to an accident.
Hamilton won three out of the first four races of the season before Verstappen took over. But with the win at the British Grand Prix, Max’s lead is down to 8 points and this weekend is a chance to return to the top of the standings for Hamilton. No one has won the Hungarian Grand Prix more than Hamilton who has 8 wins at the Hungaroring. He’s won this race in each of the last three seasons.
Perez has dropped to 5th in the drivers’ standings after a 16th place finish at the British Grand Prix. Despite that, Checo is off to a great start in his first season with Red Bull. He finished P6 or better in eight out of the first nine races of the year with two podium finishes and a win in Azerbaijan.
The Mexican only has three Top 10 finishes in 10 starts at the Hungaroring but his 7th place finish in 2020 was his best in the Hungarian Grand Prix. He also started from P4 last season, which was also his best qualifying ever in the race.
Bottas was coming off consecutive seasons where he finished behind teammate Hamilton in the drivers’ standings. But he’s struggled this year, especially on race days and he is only 4th in the current standings. Bottas has six podium finishes this season but only one of those was P2 and he has not won a race yet with the season almost halfway done already.
The Finn has a total of 8 starts at the Hungaroring and has two podium finishes here including last year’s P3 behind Hamilton and Verstappen. In the last four years, he’s started at P3 or better at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Leclerc was supposed to be the next big thing in F1. But after finishing 4th in 2019, he dropped to 8th place last season. The Monegasque driver is coming off his best race of the season at the British Grand Prix where he finished 2nd. That stands as his only podium finish this year.
He finished 4th in the 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix but could only muster P11 last year at the Hungaroring. Leclerc however has started from P4 and P6 in his last two appearances in this race.
And so the rivalry heats up after Red Bull lodged a formal appeal to review Hamilton’s penalty at the British Grand Prix. That request was rejected on Thursday and it should add more fire to this weekend’s race.
There’s no question that Max Verstappen is still the hottest driver in the championship and he will be looking for revenge this weekend. With his lead threatened, I expect a big bounce-back performance for him.
However, like the British Grand Prix, the Hungarian Grand Prix is a race that Hamilton has won more than any other driver in history. He’s won the last three races at the Hungaroring and he outlasted Verstappen in each of the last two years. With an opportunity to get ahead in the drivers’ standings, Hamilton is, without doubt, the man to watch in this race.
Barring any accidents, I expect Lewis Hamilton to win the race and prove he can beat Verstappen without any controversy. The pressure is higher on Verstappen now as it is he who must respond. I like the plus money on the winningest driver in this race.
Prediction: Lewis Hamilton +135
Aside from betting on the race winner, there are plenty of prop bets for the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix at the BetOnline App. Below are the best prop bets to make for this weekend’s F1 race at the Hungaroring:
Leclerc is coming off a strong performance at Silverstone where he finished second behind Hamilton. The Monegasque driver admirably tried to hold off Hamilton at the British Grand Prix before ultimately losing the race. But that was his first podium finish of the year and his best of the season.
He took pole position in Monaco before his weekend was ended by a crash. But that qualifying round in Monaco showed that Ferrari’s car is well-suited for downforce heavy circuits like the Circuit de Monaco six races ago and the Hungaroring this weekend.
There’s no debating who will finish in the Top 2 but with Sergio Perez having inconsistency issues in qualifying while Valtteri Bottas has struggled on race day this season, Leclerc is a good bet to finish in the podium at +200.
Predictions: Top 3 finish for Charles Leclerc +200
Lando Norris has enjoyed a successful 2021 campaign and he is the only driver to pick up points in the first 10 races of the season. Norris’ steady track record should help erase his past shaky performances at the Hungaroring.
Norris has finished inside the Top 5 in nine out of the 10 races this season, including the last six races. I expect another consistent effort from Norris. He has good value for a podium finish as well but for me, a Top 6 finish should be safe.
Prediction: Lando Norris Top 6 finish -300
Like Ferrari, Aston Martin’s cars are tailor-made for downforce heavy race tracks like Monaco and the Hungaroring. At the Monaco Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll qualified 8th and 13th but finished the race 5th and 8th for a double-points finish.
I expect a similar outcome here, given the similarities between the two race tracks. The Aston Martin cars’ downforce advantage should push both drivers forward in a midfield battle. Seven of the top 10 spots should be occupied by Red Bull, Mercedes, Ferrari, and Lando Norris but the rest should be up for grabs and I like both Aston Martin drivers to pick up points here.
Prediction: Both Aston Martin Cars Point Finish +200
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