F1 Betting Guide
Formula 1 is the pinnacle of motorsport with the fastest cars, best drivers, and most prestigious teams all competing for the two FIA World Championships. It is a careful balance of technology, bravery, ingenuity, and skill as each gruelling Grand Prix tests the drivers, their cars, and the teams to their limits.
With all these elements needed to win in Formula 1, betting on the sport is an enthralling challenge. To get you into pole position, we’ve created this F1 betting guide to get you up to speed with the different F1 bets you can make, the various markets available, and how to read the odds.
Motorsport and F1 Betting Markets
Formula 1 is the largest and most-watched motorsport in the world, so it’s no surprise that it also has the biggest betting markets for petrolheads. Here are the main markets you’re likely to come across while wagering on F1.
F1 Grand Prix Weekend Betting Markets
There are 24 race weekends spread out across the year, with action taking place on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. There are several different markets available for each weekend, with most decided during the race on Sunday.
They can vary across race weekends but will include odds on who will win the race, who will finish on the podium, and who will get the fastest pit stop.
For F1 Sprint weekends, where a second shorter race is run on the Saturday before the main Grand Prix, you’ll usually find odds on the outcome of the Sprint race too.
F1 Championships and Futures Betting Markets
In addition to being able to bet on each Grand Prix, you have the option of placing wagers on the outcome of the two Formula 1 World Championships and some other season-long futures markets.
The two most popular options are the Drivers’ Championship and Constructors’ Championship outright markets. In these, you pick which driver or team you think will finish the season with the most points.
There are also other outright betting options, including driver match ups and specials (more on those later).
Formula 2
Most race weekends are supported by feeder series like Formula 2. At events where these junior Formulae are competing, you can expect to find betting markets for Formula 2 races with a similar mix of betting options as Formula 1.
Other Motorsports
Formula 1 might be the most prestigious and best-known motorsport, but it’s certainly not the only championship for fans of car and bike racing.
Popular motorsport betting markets include American championships like IndyCar and NASCAR, as well as international series like the World Rally Championship, and the Supercars Championship.
If you love racing on two wheels, then you’ll want to check out the Speedway Grand Prix and MotoGP betting markets.
Some of these motorsports have odds available for both individual races and outright championships, though this coverage isn’t universal.
Types of bets that can be placed on Formula 1
Within the betting markets described above, you’ll find a selection of different types of bets that you can place on Formula 1 and other motorsports.
For races, you can find odds for both race winner and podium (1-3) finish. The former pays out if the driver you pick crosses the finish line first, while the latter will pay out if your pick finishes in first, second, or third place.
Driver performance bets focus on individual drivers and pose different scenarios. For example, if you think Max Verstappen will win the next Grand Prix, you can take the “Yes” bet and it’ll pay out if he takes the chequered flag. However, if you think he may not win for any reason (a different finishing position, retirement, disqualification, etc), then you’d pick “No” instead.
You can also find odds on which driver will bag the fastest pit stop during the race. When making these bets, remember that the team’s pit crew is just as important in the outcome as the driver.
In outright markets, you can bet on which driver or team will win their respective championship with odds offered almost as soon as the previous season ends.
Additional outright markets include:
- Matchups: A bet between two drivers (usually teammates) of which will finish the season with more points.
- Fastest Laps: A wager on which driver will have the most fastest laps across the whole season.
- Championship Without The Leader: If a certain driver is dominating Formula 1 at the time, you can also bet on which driver will win the World Championship with the leader taken out of the equation.
- Best Finishing Position: A wager on which of the listed teams or drivers will have the highest finish in a race over the season.
Understanding F1 Betting Odds
As with all sports in the UK, F1 betting odds are displayed in the fractional odds format by default. However, if you prefer, you can switch to either the decimal format or the moneyline (American) format.
No matter which you choose, the underlying probability and any potential profits remain the same, so it’s just down to personal preference. In any case, you can use our odds calculator to help you compare odds and see what return you can expect if you win your bet.
If you choose to stick with fractional odds, you’ll see them displayed as two numbers split with a slash. Some examples of this include 10/1, 10/3, and 1/5.
Calculating your potential winnings with these odds is simple as the number on the left is how much you’d win for every time you wagered the number on the right. With 10/1 odds, this would mean winnings of £10 for every £1 bet (plus your stake), so a £5 wager would return £55 (your £5 stake plus £50 of profit).
In decimal format, these three example odds are displayed as 11, 4.33, and 1.2. Calculating your payout is easier in this format because you simply multiply your wager by the odds. Therefore, a £10 bet at 1.2 odds would payout £12.
Moneyline odds look and work differently to fractional and decimal formats. They’re displayed as either a + or - with three or four digits afterwards. As with all formats, the smaller the number, the more likely the outcome is. However, calculating payouts with moneyline odds requires a different approach.
Our three examples in moneyline format would be displayed as +1000, +333, and -500. You use separate calculations for positive and negative odds, so be sure to pay attention to the symbol at the beginning.
For odds of +1000, this means you’d need to wager £100 to receive winnings of £1,000. In contrast, negative odds of -500 mean you’d need to bet £500 to win £100 (plus your original stake).
F1 Betting Terms you need to know
If you’re betting on Formula 1, you’ll notice some common words and phrases that come up all of the time. Here’s a handy glossary of the most important ones that you should be aware of.
- 1-3: This is a bet on which driver(s) will finish on the podium, for these bets to pay out, your chosen driver must be classified as finishing first, second, or third.
- Grand Prix: The main Formula 1 race that usually takes place on Sunday (except for Las Vegas, which takes place on Saturday). Most F1 bets are based on events that take place in the Grand Prix.
- Fastest Lap: The driver that completes a full circuit of the track during the Grand Prix in the fastest time.
- Outright: A bet on the entire season rather than a single Grand Prix, the most common outright wagers are on the two F1 World Championships
- Constructor: The official word used to describe F1’s teams, mostly used in reference to the Constructors’ Championship.
- Matchup: Wagers that pit two drivers or teams against each other, your task is to predict who will finish ahead of the other.