Singapore GP betting tips and best bets: Lewis Hamilton back in hunt for podium finish
- Henry Valantine
- 14 September 2023
Max Verstappen broke an all-time F1 record by taking his 10th consecutive victory at Monza last time out, and unsurprisingly he’s hot favourite to win at Singapore this weekend.
Marina Bay could hardly be more different as a place to race this time, however, with the cars requiring much more downforce and the drivers needing all their physical prowess alongside their driving skill.
The Singapore Grand Prix being the race for which the drivers have to train hardest all year.
There’s a strange little statistical anomaly here, though, as Verstappen is still yet to win a race around the streets of Singapore.
So, there’s a little glimmer of hope for the rest of the field at least.
Here are Planet Sport's predictions and tips for the Singapore Grand Prix...
Lewis Hamilton – podium finish
Lewis Hamilton might have said Monza was the “worst race” of the season for him and Mercedes, but the streets of Marina Bay should be much better suited for what their car is good at.
The seven-time World Champion took pole position in Hungary in July, another track where downforce is king.
And as a four-time winner at Marina Bay, he pulled out possibly the greatest lap of his career to start first in Singapore back in 2018. (Look it up, it’s well worth watching).
He may have been off the pace at Monza, but Hamilton could be back in the hunt this time around.
Oscar Piastri - top six finish
Now, Oscar Piastri has never raced around Singapore before, and will have a job adjusting to the heat and humidity of the Marina Bay nights, but McLaren’s surge forward has also come with a big improvement in the young Aussie.
He’s been much closer to Lando Norris in both qualifying and race trim and represents better value for a top six finish over his McLaren team-mate.
Liam Lawson - points finish
A bold prediction on only Lawson’s third race as a stand-in for Daniel Ricciardo?
Yes. Potentially a stupid prediction, considering it’s on Formula 1’s most demanding track? Quite possibly.
But Lawson performed to a very high level at Monza in an underperforming car, finishing 11th and only six seconds off the points, and with AlphaTauri bringing significant upgrades to their car this weekend, they could well put themselves in the hunt for the top 10.
Lawson said before the weekend that Singapore was one of his favourite circuits to play on video games growing up (cheers for making us feel old, Liam), and that he can’t wait to get going.
It’s a huge ask, but he could be up for the task.
Singapore GP predictions:
Lewis Hamilton – podium finish
