26 April 2023 , 15:43
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Life might be difficult in F1 for Lewis Hamilton right now, but his hopes of avoiding a wretched season have been boosted by a supercomputer.
Hamilton finished sixth in the standings in 2022, his lowest position in all his 16 seasons of competing. And despite a second place finish in Australia last time out, early indications suggest it will be another long year for the seven-time world champion and his Mercedes team, as they struggle to adapt to F1's new era.
But he supercomputer prediction from BonusCodeBets, which compiled outright odds markets to formulate what the final standings will look like, has at least backed the iconic driver to improve this year. He's been tipped to finish in fourth place, exacting revenge on teammate George Russell who bettered him last season.
Russell is predicted to be fifth. There are no surprises over the three drivers ahead of them though, with Red Bull driver Max Verstappen the 1/9 favourite to win his third consecutive title. Teammate Sergio Perez comes next at 12/1, while Fernando Alonso's early season form with Aston Martin has him placed third at 18/1.
Things don't look so rosey for another British driver though in Lando Norris. It's been an awful few weeks for McLaren, with their great hope and new man Oscar Piastri mustering just 12 points between them in three races.
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But the Australian rookie has been tipped to better Norris, who has voiced his ambitions to challenge for the title with his British team. Piastri is touted to end up 13th, two places ahead of his more experienced partner.
Can Lando Norris finish above new teammate Oscar Piastri? (HOCH ZWEI/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)As for the Constructors' race, again no surprises with Red Bull already 58 points clear. But what will raise eyebrows is Ferrari being second favourites at 22/1, despite the current turmoil at The Scuderia. Aston Martin are being backed for third, ahead of Mercedes.
A BonusCodeBets spokesperson said: “Our supercomputer predicts Max Verstappen will win the Drivers Championship with Red Bull also picking up the Constructors Championship. We thought Mercedes would have put up more of a fight but there are still 20 races to go. At the moment, we’ve got Ferrari ahead of the Silver Arrows and Aston Martin."
The next Grand Prix takes place in Baku this weekend, with Christian Horner's team again expected to dominate: “Both markets for Drivers and Constructors look tight if you take Verstappen, Perez and Red Bull out of the equation," the spokesperson added.