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The Formula One 2019 season continues this coming weekend with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Followed by the fifth leg of the competition which will be in Spain – The 2019 Spanish Grand Prix.
History of Motor Racing in Spain
Motosport in Spain dates back to the early 1900s when the Catalan Cup was being raced on the roads of Sitges, a coastal town in the Catalonia region and southwest of Barcelona. The 1908 and 1909 Catalan Cup was won by Frenchman Jules Goux who would go on to win the Indianapolis 500 in 2013, becoming the first European driver to do so. In 2013, Spain held the first ever Spanish Grand Prix and taking place on a 300 km road circuit at Guadarrama, near Madrid and on the road to Valladolid.
As enthusiasm for racing grew, a new 2km track was built and it was called the Sitges-Terramar, the site of the 1923 Spanish Grand Prix. Three years later, the race moved to Circuito Lasarte near Bilbao. The Spanish Civil War temporarily ended racing in Spain. After just two races in the next three decades, Spain returned to the international racing picture in 1967 with a non-championship Grand Prix. The GP was held at a new and permanent racing circuit in Jarama, north of Madrid. Jim Clark won the first race there using his Lotus F1 car.
After another circuit at Jerez in the late ’80s, the Spanish Grand Prix moved to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in 1991. The Williams team dominated the first three races in Barcelona while Michael Schumacher won the Spanish Grand Prix six times including his first for Ferrari in 1996 under heavy rain. Mika Hakkinen took three wins and almost had a fourth in 2001 when his car failed in the final lap.
Previous Winners
The arrival of Spanish race driver Fernando Alonso gave the Spanish Grand Prix more attention. Alonso finished second in 2003 and 2005 before winning from pole in 2006. Alonso also had podium finishes in 2007 (3rd), 2011 (2nd) and 2012 (2nd) and won the race a second time in 2013. Alonso and Carlos de Salamanca in 1913 are the only Spanish drivers to win the Spanish Grand Prix.
As mentioned earlier, Schumacher has the most wins in this race at six, twice more than the next group of drivers. Louis Chiron, Jackie Stewart, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Mika Hakkinen, and Lewis Hamilton have three wins each. On the other hand, Emerson Fittipaldi, Mario Andretti, Ayrton Senna, Kimi Raikkonen, and Alonso have two each. Hamilton has won three out of the last five editions of the Spanish Grand Prix, including the last two.
As for constructors, Ferrari has the most wins at 12. McLaren and Williams have eight wins each while Lotus has seven. Mercedes is next with six Spanish Grand Prix triumphs while Bugatti and Red Bull have three apiece. Alfa Romeo is at the bottom of the list with two victories in Spain. Mercedes has won four out of the last five years, including the last two.
Track Preview
The track, which has an FIA Grade 1 license and sits a capacity of 140,700 on the stands, is described as an all-rounder circuit with its long straights and variety of corners. The direction of the wind at the circuit can change significantly during the day which is a key factor in the race given the importance of aerodynamics to F1 cars. This variability can cause the unexpected performance of some cars. The changeable wind conditions have also caused accidents, most notably Fernando Alonso’s crash during testing in 2005 which was attributed to severe wind conditions.
The first turn of the track is the overtaking point while turn 2 is almost full throttle. Turn 3 is a long right-hander that leads to a short straight before turn 4, the Repsol curve. Turn 4 is another right-hander and what comes immediately right after it is the slow left-hander Turn 5 which drops downhill to the left of Turn 6.
Turns 7 and 8 are uphill left to right chicane while Turn 9 is a completely blind and fast right-hander. The long back straight leads to turn 10 which is a left-hand hairpin. This is followed by Turns 11 and 12 a left kink before a long, slow right. Turn 13 is another right-hander and the cars have to cross the track fast to take the line through the left to right chicane of Turns 14 and 15. Finally, Turn 16 is a right-hander that takes the cars across the finish line.
2019 Spanish Grand Prix Betting
The current Spanish Grand Prix is still held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is run for a total of 66 laps on the 4.655 km circuit for a total of 307.104 km race distance. This year’s Spanish Grand Prix will be held on Sunday, May 12, 2019, at 9:10 P.M.
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Last year, Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes won for the second straight year. Hamilton’s teammate, Valtteri Bottas, finished second while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, the 2016 winner, finished in third place. Verstappen’s 2018 teammate, Daniel Ricciardo, ran the fastest lap while Hamilton took pole position.
Betting on the Spanish Grand Prix should open after this weekend. The odds for this year’s race aren’t out yet because there is still another race to be run before the 2019 Spanish Grand Prix. However, barring anything major in Azerbaijan this weekend, we expect Lewis Hamilton to be on top of the odds board for the 5th consecutive race this season. Hamilton is the current leader in the Drivers Standings and he won the last two races this year. He is also the current race champion at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s teammate Bottas, the two Ferrari drivers in Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc will be other three drivers expected to challenge Hamilton on top of the odds board. Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly, Kimi Raikkonen and Daniel Ricciardo are expected to follow the Top 4. Start betting on F1 with our betting tips.
Check back on us for the odds, preview, and prediction for the 2019 Spanish Grand Prix.
