Miami Grand Prix betting tips and F1 race predictions: Norris can stretch podium run

Where to watch the Miami Grand Prix
Sky Sports F1, 9pm Sunday

Best bet

Lando Norris podium finish
1pt 11-8 general

Esteban Ocon points finish
1pt 5-1 Hills

Miami Grand Prix race predictions

Max Verstappen looked utterly peerless once again in China last time out, but thankfully for neutrals the battle behind him is showing signs of heating up and that should continue in this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

For the first time this season the winning driver wasn’t chased home by their teammate in Shanghai, as Lando Norris came in second. He was helped by a safety car that was timed perfectly for his strategy, but it was a strong performance from McLaren and one that continued a trend.

On the Friday, Norris had secured pole position for the the sprint race – the third time in the last four sprint weekends that the team saw one of its cars start from the front in the shortened race.

That is significant because sprint-format weekends see the teams restricted to a single hour of practice before the important sessions start, and shows how adept the team are at quickly tailoring their cars to a circuit’s individual demands. Miami sees another sprint weekend, so it would be no surprise to see McLaren up with the pace from the outset.

The team are also bringing a significant car upgrade to Miami – something else they have tended to nail.

Mercedes also have upgrades this weekend, but their inconsistent perform­ances suggest they still don’t fully understand what makes their car tick.

For the first time this season, Ferrari failed to get a car on the podium in China, but Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz should be in the hunt in Miami.

Alpine were expected to struggle having unveiled an overweight, ungainly car at preseason testing, and it has been a trying time for the French team who are yet to get off the mark for the season.

There was some encouragement in China last time, though, as Esteban Ocon guided an upgraded machine to 11th place, just two and a half seconds away from a points finish.

The team will have learned a lot from that outing and Ocon – a race winner in 2021 – could prove overpriced to give Alpine their first points of the season.

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