The 2023 Formula 1 season stops off in the Netherlands this weekend for the Dutch Grand Prix and it looks like a tough ask for Max Verstappen’s rivals to stop the home favourite winning this event for the third-straight year.
Having returned to the calendar in 2021 after a 36-year absence, the Dutch GP has been held at Circuit Zandvoort in 2021 and 2022 and it has been Verstappen that has taken the chequered flag on both occasions.
The 25-year-old has been the dominant force in F1 over the last two seasons, clinching the world title in both, and it is hard to look past anything than another win for him this weekend.
Verstappen is the 1/4 favourite to claim the spoils for the 11th time this year, 1/8 for a podium finish and 4/6 to record the fastest lap – something he has done six times this season.
Lewis Hamilton – Podium Finish @ 8/11
While this has been another year where Lewis Hamilton has failed to get close to Verstappen, the Brit has at least managed to stay competitive with those away from the Red Bull ace and he is yet to finish outside of the top 10.
The 38-year-old has finished on the podium four times – in Australia, Spain, Canada and Great Britain – while he was second at this track in 2021 before finishing fourth the following year.
Hamilton looked good in first practice on Friday as he was third quickest, clocking a time of 1:12.225, and there were certainly positive signs from those 24 laps.
The seven-time world champion was fourth fastest in second practice, recording a 1:11.638, and he looks more than capable of ending up on the podium at Circuit Zandvoort for the second time.
Alex Albon – Points Finish @ 6/4
A value pick to finish in the points is Williams driver Alex Albon, who has ended up in the top-10 places three times this season and has narrowly missed out on increasing that tally twice with two 11th-place results.
The 27-year-old impressed in P1 with the fifth fastest time and he improved on that effort in P2, clocking a 1:11.599 to end up with the third quickest time.
Albon almost grabbed a points finish in Hungary a couple of races ago, finishing 11th on a track similar to Zandvoort, and there is every chance he could end up in the top 10 for the fourth time this year after showing strong promise in the Netherlands on Friday.
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