F1 Odds, Picks & Predictions: 3 Best Bets for Season Opener at Bahrain Grand Prix (Saturday, March 2)

Check out the F1 odds and Bahrain Grand Prix picks and predictions for the Formula 1 season opener on Saturday, March 2.

Last week we saw F1 cars take the track for the first time in 2024 as they went through preseason testing ahead of Saturday's F1 Bahrain Grand Prix (10 a.m. ET, ESPN and ESPN+) at the same track.

Testing may or may not be a reliable indicator. Teams were trying different things before the season starts, but generally, we get at least a little bit of a signal as to how they'll perform coming out of the gates.

Red Bull once again looked to be the class of the field in testing. Max Verstappen is rightfully the heavy favorite to take home the Drivers' Championship in 2024, just as he has the last three seasons.

Verstappen is also the run-away favorite to win this weekend, according to the latest F1 Bahrain Grand Prix odds:

• Max Verstappen (-333)
• Charles Leclerc (+1000)
• Sergio Perez (+1200)
• Carlos Sainz (+2200)
• Lewis Hamilton (+2500)

The same teams that ended last season toward the top of the standings will likely be there again, but there may be some surprise risers and fallers. This can provide an opportunity to profit if you can react to this data earlier in the season than the books can.

Before F1 Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying kicks off on Friday morning (11 a.m. ET, ESPN2 and ESPN+), I’ve taken a look at some of the practice data and found some actionable items that look to be profitable bets for this weekend.

Here are my F1 Bahrain Grand Prix best bets for pre-qualifying. 

(Odds as of Thursday and via Caesars. Use our Caesars Sportsbook bonus code to get bonus bets for the F1 Bahrain GP on Saturday.)

F1 Bahrain Grand Prix Odds and Picks 

Racing Bulls – Best of the Rest in 2024?

We already saw Alpha Tauri making strides at the end of last season as they rallied to finish seventh in the Constructor Standings. Now, the team has rebranded to Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team, making them the butt of many jokes.

However, while the name of the team has changed, the RB cars exhibited plenty of pace in preseason testing. That preseason testing can be misleading for many reasons since we don’t know the exact setups, power settings or fuel loads these cars are running with.

Even still, the best lap time throughout testing for RB was Yuki Tsunoda’s 1:30.775 on Day 3, which was the fifth fastest of the session.

It appears that RB could be the team to emerge in the mid-pack this year and be a strong bet in the top-six and top-10 markets before the books start to catch on. I think that either driver could be a strong bet this weekend, but I personally like taking Tsunoda to score a top 10.

In the last three seasons with a car that was likely not as good as this one appears to be, he scored finishes in ninth, eighth and 11th after starting 13th or worse in all three. 

I think that this weekend Yuki can make it to Q3 and finish in the top half of the field barring any mechanical issues or the RB car not being as good as it was in testing. If you want to throw a dart at a long shot, you could also find Tsunoda +1100 for a top-six finish.

The Pick: Yuki Tsunoda Top 10 Finish (-120 at Caesars)

Another bet on the RB team that I like is taking Daniel Ricciardo at +105 odds in a matchup against Lance Stroll.

Aston Martin likely has a better car than RB, but Stroll has not shown an ability to elevate that car or even perform up to the level that it is capable of in most situations.

In this case, the cars are close enough that I will take the much more talented driver in Ricciardo. With the current plus-money price tag, this is a no-brainer to me.

The Pick: Daniel Ricciardo over Lance Stroll (+105 at BetMGM)

Ferrari Looking For a Strong Start

Based on preseason testing and how we saw 2023 conclude, it appears that Ferrari is well-positioned to be Red Bull’s closest competitor once again. 

Bahrain is one of Charles Leclerc’s best tracks on the F1 calendar. He has started in the top-four positions in each of his last four races here and even scored both a pole position and a win to open the 2022 season.

Leclerc also qualified on the pole and led 41 laps in 2019 before finishing third.

A power issue took the No. 16 car out of the running last season after Leclerc put down the third-fastest lap in qualifying. If Ferrari can put a reliable vehicle on the track and not be a victim to the high tire degradation that they exhibited throughout 2023, Leclerc should be in good position to score a podium finish.

The Pick: Charles LeClerc Podium Finish (+100 at bet365, Caesars or BetMGM)