Can Verstappen Still Win the F1 Title This Season

We’re almost at the half season of the F1 and things are becoming clearer on the standings. At the moment, it seems like only 4 drivers are capable of winning the F1 title. One of them is Max Verstappen, who was one of the main favourites before the start of the competition.



However, things didn’t really go as expected for Verstappen as he’s currently 3rd on the driver’s standings. But, this situation can change easily in the coming period as there are 13 more races to go. Let’s see if Verstappen can turn things around this season.



Verstappen’s F1 Title Chances According to Betting Operators



Many bookmakers saw Max Verstappen as one of the main candidates for winning the F1 title for a 5th consecutive time. Some put the driver on top of the list while others settled for the 2nd or 3rd position.



In terms of odds, most sportsbooks gave Verstappen 3.33/1 (4.33) odds for winning the trophy. Now, the odds range from 10/1 (11.00) to 167/10 (17.70). This is a massive increase in the odds, which indicates that the driver’s chances of winning the competition dropped significantly.



Just as a comparison, we’ll present the odds for Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris winning the F1 title. These are the only 2 drivers in front of Verstappen and they also feature the lowest betting odds at the betting operators .



Piastri’s odds go between 1/2 (1.50) and 8/11 (1.74) while Norris’ odds range from 6/4 (2.50) to 13/8 (2.67). These are much lower odds compared to the ones given to Verstappen . As such, we can say that the bookmakers believe that Piastri and Norris have the biggest chances of winning the F1 title.



Analysing Verstappen’s Previous Races



In the total 11 F1 races that took place this season, Verstappen managed to win only two. Those were the Japanese GP and the Emilia Romagna GP.



This driver also finished 2nd at the Australian GP, Saudi Arabian GP, and Canadian GP. He hasn’t had a 3rd finish, but he ended in 4th place at the Chinese GP, US GP (Miami), and Monaco GP. Verstappen also ended the Bahrain GP in 6th place and the Spanish GP in 10th position.



In the Austrian GP, Verstappen had an accident, which forced him to finish the race early and miss out on some points. It seems like his poor performances in the Bahrain, Spanish, and Austrian GPs greatly distanced him from the top.



But, we should also note that his teammate Yuki Tsunoda wasn’t of great help to the Dutch either. He regularly finishes the races in the bottom half. Just as a comparison, Piastri and Norris are teammates at McLaren and function perfectly.



They are almost always close to each other on the racetracks and on the standings. These drivers also help each other on the tracks, especially if one of the main rivals is close by.



Verstappen’s Winning Chances at the Upcoming Events



Despite the 61-point difference from 1st place, Verstappen still has a somewhat good chance of winning the F1 title. Anything can happen in the upcoming 13 F1 races. Plus, we must not forget that Verstappen is the current and 4-time consecutive champion. His driving experience is undeniable.



Now, we should note that Verstappen is well familiar with all 13 upcoming F1 races. He managed to win all of them at least once in the past several years, apart from the Singapore GP.



This driver is especially good at the Abu Dhabi GP, Mexican GP, Belgian GP, Dutch GP, US GP, and Brazilian GP racetracks. However, last year, he only won the Brazilian GP out of all these races. This shows a drastic drop in his form.



The Qatar GP is also familiar to Verstappen as he won the last 2 editions. He also won the Italian GP and the Hungarian GP 2 times in the past 3 years. However, once again, he didn’t do it in the 2024 season.



We should note that Verstappen had the least success at the Las Vegas GP, British GP, and Azerbaijan GP. These are probably the main 3 races that he might struggle with.



However, with the right approach, motivation, and dedication, Verstappen can manage to win any of these races. Let’s see how he performs in the upcoming F1 events.
The post Can Verstappen Still Win the F1 Title This Season appeared first on Formula1News.co.uk .