F1 FANTASY: The F1 TV team share their tips ahead of the 2024 season opener

The Bahrain Grand Prix is here, so it’s time to get your F1 Fantasy teams in tip top shape for the season ahead before qualifying begins on Friday. If you can’t quite decide who to pick, and there are some tough choices, our F1 TV line-up have shared some of their tips for 2024.

For those who don’t already know, F1 Fantasy is free to play, and there are great prizes on offer throughout the season, including two F1 Paddock Club passes to a 2025 Grand Prix* for the winner of the Global League.

With $100M to spend, build your dream team of five drivers and two constructors (making as many changes as you want before qualifying starts in Bahrain), set up and join leagues with your friends, and play online and in the official F1 app.

F1 FANTASY: Pick your 2024 team now for a chance to win incredible prizes

But who do you choose? Do you trust your head or your heart? Our F1 TV team have been creating their own outfits for the campaign to come, and here are some of the secrets they’re prepared to share that maybe could be of some use to you…

Will Buxton – F1 LIVE Lead Reporter & Motorsport Journalist

“As always pricing makes this an incredibly tough choice. Especially for your big hitters around the $20 million mark. Hamilton at 19.3 seems a steal but Perez, due to his poor qualifying, had huge overtaking points in 2023 and might be worth a few extra pennies.

“Right now though, the two best value drivers on the entire grid appear to be Fernando Alonso at $15.8m and Daniel Ricciardo at $9m. While Aston's pace is a bit of an unknown, Alonso's tenacity is never in doubt and I'd expect some big hauls for him. Meanwhile RB showed well in testing (yes, it's only testing) and at that price Ricciardo is a cheap risk to take. There's also the looming prospect he could get switched to the big team at any moment, so getting him on the cheap and hanging on could be a smart play.

“As for a surprise, Bottas at $6.4 million could be fun. The Kick Sauber showed flashes of pace and could make an early shock.”

READ MORE: F1 TV announces new features and confirms presenter line up for 2024

Laura Winter – F1 LIVE Reporter & Motorsport Presenter

“My pick is Daniel Ricciardo. After a difficult 2023 which saw him on the sidelines for the first half, and then, once he claimed the AlphaTauri seat, suffer a broken hand, he’s now had a decent run of races and a full winter of training ahead of the 2024 season.

“At $9m he’s affordable and we could well see his stock rise through a season in which the driver market is expected to be very silly indeed. The eight-time Grand Prix winner had a spring in his step and a smile on his face at testing, and newly-named RB seem to have taken a step from last season to be fighting in the midfield. Overtaking opportunities galore…”

Lawrence Barretto – F1 LIVE Reporter & Motorsport Writer

“One of my driver picks is Yuki Tsunoda, who only had a fleeting presence in my F1 Fantasy team last year. This is his fourth year in the sport and I expect him to level up again in 2024.

“The RB looked handy in testing – and Bahrain is a track where Tsunoda tends to go well, so hopefully he’ll deliver a solid haul of points for my team!”

READ MORE: 4 Winners and 4 Losers from pre-season testing – Who was left craving more time in Bahrain?

Sam Collins – F1 LIVE Technical Analyst

“It’s quite easy to pick the big money items in your F1 Fantasy teams, Max Verstappen and Red Bull seem like no brainers after pre-season testing, but who else should you go for? For me, the sleeper option is Kick Sauber. The Swiss team seemed entirely anonymous in pre-season testing, and despite its fluorescent green stripes it is easy to overlook the team at first. However, look closer and you see a team that has had a massive shift, not just in team identity but in concept too.

“The new Sauber has taken some key elements of the Red Bull RB19 concept, including its distinctive pull rod front suspension, and applied them liberally to their new concept. As is always the case with a team adopting something new, it might take a few races to bed in, but with a hefty wind tunnel allowance and a desire to build momentum ahead of Audi’s arrival in 2026, I think that this team, and both of its drivers, are seriously undervalued.”

Alex Brundle – F1 LIVE Commentator & Analyst

“I have added RB to my Constructor list this year. The shift in proximity towards world champions Red Bull and the resultant information sharing will surely improve their chances. That, along with Daniel Ricciardo hitting his stride in the car.

“With a full off-season to prepare, he’ll be an out-performer concerning his budget amount. All that remains to work out is whether Yuki Tsunoda can also perform for them throughout the season.”

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Chris McCarthy – Commentator

“Looking at constructing your team for this season, the first area I look to is, well, the Constructors. We know Red Bull must go in, so it's a case of who joins them, and for me this should be Ferrari. They fall slightly lower in price than McLaren, meaning you will have some more money for drivers, and from what we've seen so far, they look to be fighting at the front of the chasing pack.

“For drivers, looking away from some obvious more expensive choices, I'd be looking at the RB pairing. They seem to have an impressive car this year, and there’s talk that Daniel Ricciardo could possibly move over to Red Bull, which would be a steal at his current price at $9M.”

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