BETTING GUIDE: Who are the favourites as F1 heads to Hungary?

Hungary hosts the 13th race weekend of what is becoming a fascinating season, with Lewis Hamilton’s win last time out in Silverstone making him the sixth different driver to stand on the top step of the rostrum in 2024.

But can Max Verstappen get back to winning ways, or will Lando Norris and McLaren continue their fine run of form? Here’s what the odds have to say…

188BET’s odds are presented in decimal form: for every $1 wagered you would win the figure represented by the odds; so, if Verstappen is favourite at 1.50, you would win $1.50 for every dollar bet.

The odds for the win

Verstappen might have found himself challenged more than usual of late, but the Dutchman has still won seven Grands Prix this season, with his most recent victory being in Spain. Add that to his three Sprint victories and it is easy to see why the odds have him as favourite for the win.

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Norris is second favourite, having scored six podiums from the last eight races. He hasn’t stood on the top step since Miami, but he’s been getting closer and closer and was arguably the favourite for the win in Austria until that get together with Verstappen. As for the Mercedes pair, the bookmakers can’t separate them – with the winners of the previous two races, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, narrowly ahead of Oscar Piastri, who is still chasing a maiden Grand Prix victory.

● Max Verstappen 1.65
● Lando Norris 4.50
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 12.0
● Oscar Piastri 13.0
● Charles Leclerc 21.0
● Carlos Sainz 26.0
● Sergio Perez 67.0
● Daniel Ricciardo, Esteban Ocon, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda 301
● Alex Albon, Kevin Magnussen, Logan Sargeant, Nico Hulkenberg, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 601

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - JULY 07: Race winner Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes celebrates — Hamilton won the most recent race - his first win of the year

The odds for who will be fastest in qualifying

After that run of pole positions at the start of the year, Verstappen has only scored one pole for a Grand Prix from his last five attempts. The field is definitely closing up over one lap, with Russell emerging as a very strong contender on Saturdays.

The Mercedes man has bagged two poles and two second row starts from the last four races, and is brimming with confidence. But what can Ferrari do? They’ve dropped slightly back from the chasing pack, with Charles Leclerc failing to even make Q3 at two of the last four races. Instead, they’ve watched as first McLaren and now Mercedes take the fight to Red Bull in their place, with the field definitely a lot closer than it was at the start of the year.

● Max Verstappen 2.60
● Lando Norris 4.50
● George Russell 6.00
● Lewis Hamilton 8.00
● Charles Leclerc 11.0
● Carlos Sainz, Oscar Piastri 13.0
● Sergio Perez 34.0
● Fernando Alonso 67.0
● Nico Hulkenberg 101
● Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Lance Stroll, Pierre Gasly 151
● Daniel Ricciardo, Kevin Magnussen, Yuki Tsunoda 201
● Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 251

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - JULY 07: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull — Verstappen is chasing a first Grand Prix win since Spain this weekend

The odds for a podium finish

The podiums this year have been split across the top four teams, with Aston Martin yet to step onto the rostrum and no other midfield team having had a ‘special’ race. That being said, Hungary does often throw up some chaos, so an outsider could make a run come Sunday.

Sergio Perez has dropped down the order when it comes to the favourites for a rostrum, the Mexican having not made it to the podium since round five back in China. He could do with a strong race full stop after a tricky time of it last time out at Silverstone, where he came home well down the order in P17.

● Max Verstappen 1.33
● Lando Norris 1.65
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 1.90
● Oscar Piastri 2.50
● Charles Leclerc 3.75
● Carlos Sainz 4.50
● Sergio Perez 13.0
● Fernando Alonso 51.0
● Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly 67.0
● Daniel Ricciardo, Lance Stroll, Yuki Tsunoda 101
● Kevin Magnussen, Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 251

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 18: Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren walks in the Paddock during — Norris has scored three podiums in the last four race weekends

The odds for a top-six finish

Nico Hulkenberg has been muscling his way into the top 10 of late, finishing sixth at the last two races. He’s on good form – but the margins are so small in the midfield that a poor session could easily see someone else take his place.

RB have been scoring points all season – but very much in the lower reaches of the top 10, while Alex Albon has also shown he is capable of taking points if the car suits the track.

But most of the top six slots have been occupied by the top teams all year long, so it is no surprise to see Red Bull, McLaren and Mercedes as the favourites for those positions come Sunday.

● Max Verstappen 1.07
● Lando Norris 1.12
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 1.17
● Oscar Piastri 1.20
● Charles Leclerc 1.40
● Carlos Sainz 1.50
● Sergio Perez 2.25
● Fernando Alonso 4.50
● Nico Hulkenberg 7.00
● Alex Albon, Lance Stroll 13.0
● Esteban Ocon 15.0
● Pierre Gasly 17.0
● Daniel Ricciardo, Yuki Tsunoda 21.0
● Kevin Magnussen 34.0
● Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas 67.0
● Zhou Guanyu 101

Haas F1's German driver Nico Hulkenberg competes during the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix on the — Hulkenberg has scored points in the past two races with a brace of P6 finishes

The odds for a points finish

Thanks to Hulkenberg’s aforementioned run of form, he’s jumped up the order when it comes to scoring points. Interestingly, despite a bit of a slump in form, Fernando Alonso is still up there at the sharp end – the Spaniard finally managing to score in Great Britain after two races outside the points.

● Max Verstappen 1.05
● Lando Norris 1.06
● Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri 1.07
● Sergio Perez 1.08
● Fernando Alonso 1.60
● Nico Hulkenberg 2.10
● Alex Albon, Lance Stroll 2.60
● Esteban Ocon 3.00
● Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda 3.25
● Daniel Ricciardo 3.50
● Kevin Magnussen 4.00
● Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas 15.0
● Zhou Guanyu 21.0

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The odds for fastest lap

With the C5 rubber on offer in Budapest, the race could well see someone bolting on the soft tyre late on and chancing their arm in a bid to steal the fastest lap bonus point.

NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - JULY 06: Alexander Albon of Great Britain and Williams during practice — Albon added to his points tally in Silverstone with a P9 finish

That point could come in handy too, with the margins further down the order very tight indeed. Haas are just four points behind RB now in the battle for sixth in the constructors’, while Williams are trying to chase down Alpine for eighth.

● Max Verstappen 2.60
● Lando Norris 7.00
● George Russell, Lewis Hamilton 7.50
● Charles Leclerc 9.00
● Carlos Sainz, Oscar Piastri 10.0
● Sergio Perez 11.0
● Fernando Alonso 34.0
● Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly 101
● Daniel Ricciardo, Lance Stroll, Yuki Tsunoda 151
● Kevin Magnussen, Logan Sargeant, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu 201

What are the odds for which team will take the most points?

Ferrari have dropped behind Mercedes now in terms of team points, no doubt helped by Charles Leclerc failing to score in the last two races. They are still ahead of McLaren in the constructors’ but not by much – so a strong weekend in Hungary would be a welcome boon.

● Red Bull 1.57
● McLaren 4.00
● Mercedes 4.75
● Ferrari 8.00
● Aston Martin 151
● Alpine, Haas, Visa Cash App RB, Kick Sauber, Williams 201

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 18: Charles Leclerc of Monaco and Ferrari walks in the Paddock during — Leclerc will be hoping Ferrari find their form this weekend, after a tricky couple of races

The odds for a Safety Car appearing during the race

Hungary does throw up some chaos – especially in the wet. As it stands, the weekend looks dry but will that stop the drivers misbehaving? There has been plenty of contact between rivals of late, and all you need for the Safety Car to be called is some carbon fibre scattered across the track…

● Yes 2.10
● No 1.65

The odds for a number of classified drivers

There has been just the one DNF from each of the last two races, although Silverstone also saw a DNS when Pierre Gasly pulled into the pits at the end of the Formation Lap with a gearbox issue. This is the part of the season where reliability could start to be a factor though, with some drivers running very low of their allocation of PU components.

● Over 18.5 1.72
● Under 18.5 2.00
● Over 19.5 3.50
● Under 19.5 1.28

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - JULY 18: George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes looks on in the Paddock — Russell suffered reliability woes in Great Britain - can he put those behind him in Hungary?

The odds for a winning margin

Hamilton just about made it over the line in Silverstone, helped by Norris holding up a charging Verstappen and preventing the Dutchman from having the time to chase the Mercedes down. The margins of victory are definitely becoming tighter and tighter as the year wears on – but what will we see in Hungary?

● Over 10 seconds 3.50
● Between 5 and 10 seconds inclusive 3.00
● Under 5 seconds 2.00