Austrian Grand Prix betting qualifying tips and F1 predictions: Sainz may have measure of group rivals

Where to watch the Austrian Grand Prix on Saturday

Sprint Sky Sports F1, 11am Saturday
Qualifying Sky Sports F1, 3pm Saturday

Best bet

Carlos Sainz to win qualifying group 2
1pt 2-1 bet365

Austrian Grand Prix qualifying predictions

Max Verstappen will start the Austrian Grand Prix sprint from pole position ahead of his best pal and closest championship rival Lando Norris.

The gap in SQ3 was less than a tenth of a second, which is becoming a familiar pattern as the battle at the front in F1 is the closest it has been for years.

However, three-time world champion Verstappen keeps showing his class and delivering perfect performances when they matter most.

The short race in the morning, while more fun for spectators than yet another practice session, is little more than a distraction for the drivers and teams, who will be more focused on Grand Prix ­qualifying later in the day.

That session is likely to follow a similar pattern to sprint qualifying, and Verstappen is a worthy odds-on favourite to take what would be his first Grand Prix pole since Emilia Romagna four races ago. 

Even that one was gained with some luck, as a well-timed slipstream boosted his speed on the straight, but Verstappen’s Red Bull car looks in better shape in Spielberg than it has for some time.

Charles Leclerc will be hoping for better luck in the main qualifyng session after engine trouble prevented him from completing a timed lap in the final part of sprint qualifying.

However, his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz had been quicker than Leclerc in the first two sections of the session and looks an interesting bet in bet365’s group betting.

Sainz is housed with Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez. Hamilton, who will replace the Spaniard at Ferrari next year, has been going well for Mercedes this weekend, but could manage only sixth on the sprint grid. Perez has once again been well off the pace of his Red Bull teammate Verstappen. 

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