Formula 1 Tips

Formula One: Australian Grand Prix Preview & Betting Tips

Darren is back with three picks for this weekend’s race at Melbourne’s Albert Park Circuit.


Will a Safety Car Be Justified in Australia?

Formula 1 is seeing more safety car use than ever. In theory, that is fine – safety is all-important. However, it was not safety concerns that led to a safety car being deployed at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix a fortnight ago. Lance Stroll’s broken-down Aston Martin was in a safe place with no need for marshals to be anywhere near harm.

Nevertheless, strangely, a safety car that compresses the field and generates the wheel-to-wheel racing that viewers love was deployed. This weekend at Melbourne’s Albert Park Circuit, there are reasons to believe that a safety car will be genuinely needed. After all, it has been called to duty in 10 of the last 13 Australian Grand Prix.


One Safety Car or Two – or Both?

Street circuits, with their unforgiven walls and limited run-off areas, are renowned for their ability to cause major accidents. So, Unibet’s industry top price of 33/100 on a safety car being used this Sunday is justified.

But bet365 is dangling some pretty big carrots on this race being punctuated by safety cars of one type or other – or both! We love the 4/5 available on both a virtual safety car (VSC) and a full safety car being used during the race. Our statistics indicate a VSC acts as a precursor to a full safety car 70 percent of the time.

The same firm offers 7/4 on the full safety car being deployed more than once. This scenario happened in last year’s Australian Grand Prix, and once again, the proposition looks over-priced.

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Darren's F1 Betting Tips

Australian Grand Prix

Safety Car and Virtual Safety Car usage is highly likely in Melbourne

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At 4/5 a £10 bet would return £18

Australian Grand Prix

April 02, 2023

5:00 am GMT+1


Max By a Minimum Distance

Of course, Max Verstappen – in a seemingly unbeatable Red Bull – is the race favourite. 2/5 is a very short price, but seemingly he only has his teammate to beat. So how far will he win by? If there is a safety car late into the race, he is unlikely to pull out a 10-plus second advantage.

Should the Dutch driver take a late pitstop to affix fresh tyres and attempt to claim the fastest lap of the race – something that earns an additional world championship point – he is also unlikely to win by a big margin.

Hey, if Verstappen gets embroiled in a major incident or suffers a mechanical issue, he is unlikely to win at all! Everything considered, the 2/1 odds offered on a race-winning margin of fewer than five seconds could give enthusiasts some excitement and a return.

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Darren's F1 Betting Tips

Australian Grand Prix

All things considered a low winning margin looks the value bet

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At 2/1 a £10 bet would return £30

Australian Grand Prix

April 02, 2023

5:00 am GMT+1


Lance Can Stroll into Top Six

Coral bookmakers are alone in offering 8/13 about Lance Stroll finishing in the top six. Many firms go just 1/2 about this outcome.

The Canadian suffered a rare retirement last time but, all-in-all, he is pretty reliable. This season he has a punchy car that has taken his teammate, Fernando Alonso, to the podium steps twice.

Stroll finished sixth in the season’s opening race, and the number crunchers believe his car will be better at this venue. Everything considered, this proposition is a short price but a good bet.

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Darren's F1 Betting Tips

Australian Grand Prix

Lance looks a good bet for another top-6 finish in his Aston Martin

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At 8/13 a £10 bet would return £16.15

Australian Grand Prix

April 02, 2023

5:00 am GMT+1


  • Safety Car and VSC (Virtual Safety Car) to both be used - 4/5 at bet365
  • Winning Margin under 5 seconds - 2/1 at bet365
  • Lance Stroll to finish in the top-six - 8/13 at Coral

* Betting odds correct at the time of publication. All odds are subject to changes.

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