It's been a strong run of form from our F1 expert Louis Bollard, and he has two big-priced selections for this weekend's Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.
F1 betting tips: Saudi Arabia Grand Prix
1pt Jack Doohan to finish in the points at 8/1 (General)
1pt Yuki Tsunoda to finish on the podium at 33/1 (General)
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The Bahrain Grand Prix saw Oscar Piastri become favourite for the World Championship after a relentless display in dominant machinery. Bahrain played into the McLaren's strengths as their advantage on tyre wear came to fruition. There is a chance that was the strongest we will see the McLaren all year, as there is only one more extreme tyre wear track (Barcelona) before the mid-season regulation change. In the meantime we have a totally different test in Jeddah this weekend.
The Jeddah circuit has been dubbed a high-speed Monaco given the barriers are akin to the Cote d'Azur circuit, but the speeds are the opposite. While overtaking isn't the easiest, it is more possible here than in Monaco or Japan with the long main straight.
The return to a less tyre-demanding circuit will be music to the ears of Red Bull, who experienced a drastic change in performance from a hassle-free win in Suzuka to Max Verstappen battling with an Alpine for a P6 finish in Bahrain. This was due to their ongoing tyre wear struggles.
There are enough positives to take the big price on YUKI TSUNODA to get his maiden podium.
Tsunoda has had a quiet start to life at Red Bull. Positively, neither of these weekends have been as troublesome as we have become used to from the second driver. He made amends for a small mistake in Japan that caused him to miss out on Q3 by getting into Q3 in Bahrain. He is trending upwards and could soon surpass where Sergio Perez got to in relation to Max at his peak.
Jeddah has been a happy hunting ground for the second Red Bull, with Checo taking the win here in 2023 and second in 2024. This shows that isn't just Verstappen who has been able to get the most out of the Red Bull around here. With a clean weekend, Tsunoda can qualify well and be in podium contention at massive odds.
Doohan delight?
There are two parts of JACK DOOHAN's season that stand out: his crash on lap one at his home race and his massive shunt after inexplicably leaving his DRS open through a corner in Japan.
Despite these mistakes, he has shown pace having been close to if not ahead of his teammate on Saturdays. This pace combined with positive Sundays in Japan and Bahrain have resulted in Flavio Briatore awarding Doohan a stay of execution until the summer at least, releasing him from the pressure of being immediately replaced by Franco Colapinto.
Pierre Gasly had a superb performance in Bahrain, only losing out to Verstappen on the final lap. Alpine can keep this momentum and Doohan can have a clean weekend to challenge for points.
Other drivers' chances
Oscar Piastri
Relentless display in Bahrain. Correct title favourite. Has gone well here in the past but car won't be as dominant as Bahrain.
Lando Norris
His recent struggles with the car came to light in Bahrain. Needs to get address his struggles to get on par with his teammate. No reason why he can't do so this weekend.
Max Verstappen
Bahrain performance exposed the car's weakness. Rumours that it was so bad he may force a move away from the team. Will be hopeful for a more Japan-like weekend rather than Bahrain.
George Russell
Fully fledged team leader now. Driving the best he ever has. Can get closer to McLaren this weekend.
Lewis Hamilton
Was relatively happy with his race last time out. Upgrades did not work as intended. Should be closer to McLaren this weekend no matter what.
Posted at 0955 BST on 17/04/25
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