The 2020 Italian Grand Prix is the 8th round of the 2020 Formula One World Championship. It will be held on September 6, 2020, at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza and raced at a distance of 306.72 km or 53 laps around the 5.793 race track.

The Italian Grand Prix is the fifth oldest race in Formula One having been held annually since 1921. This year’s race is the 90th edition of the Italian Grand Prix. Last year, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc won the Italian Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton and Formula One great Michael Schumacher are the winningest drivers in this race win five wins apiece. Among the current drivers in the championship, only Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have won the Italian Grand Prix.

Here is the official schedule for the 2020 Italian Grand Prix:

Date Activity Time (track time)
Friday, Sept. 04, 2020 Practice 1 11:00-12:30
Friday, Sept. 04, 2020 Practice 2 15:00 – 16:30
Saturday, Sept. 05, 2020 Practice 3 12:00-13:00
Saturday, Sept. 05, 2020 Qualifying 15:00-16:00
Sunday, Sept. 06,  2020 Race 15:10-17:10

“Racing" 2020 Belgian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton emerged with another dominant performance in the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix. The current world champion started from pole position and never trailed in the race. Hamilton displayed dominant control and near-perfect execution as he picked up his fifth win in seven races this season.

Hamilton was unchallenged throughout the weekend. He finished half a second ahead of teammate Valtteri Bottas in the qualifying and then dictated the pace of the race from start to finish with relentless efficiency. Bottas finished second in the race but he was never a threat. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen completed the podium but Hamilton has already taken a comfortable 47 point lead in the driver’s standings.

Here are the current Drivers standings after the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix:

  • Lewis Hamilton  157 points
  • Max Verstappen 110 points
  • Valtteri Bottas  107 points
  • Alexander Albon 48 points
  • Charles Leclerc 45 points
  • Lando Norris 45 points
  • Lance Stroll 42 points
  • Daniel Ricciardo 33 points
  • Sergio Perez  33  points
  • Esteban Ocon 26 points

“Racing" Who are the Favorites?

Here are the latest betting odds to win the Italian Grand Prix outright. These odds were taken from MyBookie.ag as of 09/02/2020:

Driver Odds
Lewis Hamilton -240
Valtteri Bottas +350
Max Verstappen +450
Daniel Ricciardo +2500
Esteban Ocon +5000
Sergio Perez +5000
Carlos Sainz +6600

Lance Stroll +6600

Lando Norris +6600

Alexander Albon +6600

Lewis Hamilton is the betting favorite for the 8th consecutive race. The defending F-1 world champion has won five out of the seven races of the season and is coming off back to back pole-to-flag wins. Hamilton has been dominant this season but in the last two races, he has been virtually unstoppable. When it comes to the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, his five race wins there are the most by any current driver. Outside Hamilton, only Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc have won here. Going back to Hamilton, he’s finished in the Top 5 in 9 of 13 appearances in Italy.

Valtteri Bottas is coming off his best year ever and was off to a winning start this season. However, with Hamilton in the same race track, The Finn has had to settle for a supporting role. Bottas has finished inside the Top 3 in six out of the seven races of the season. In his seven starts in Italy, he’s finished inside the Top 5 six times. He has two 2nd place finished in the last two years and his average finish in this race track is 5.1 which is slightly better than Hamilton’s 5.2.

Max Verstappen is the only non-Mercedes threat to Hamilton so far this season. The Belgian-Dutch driver also has six Top 3 finishes in the first seven races of the season. Verstappen upset Hamilton at Silverstone for the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix race and is currently third in the Driver’s standings. When it comes to Italy, Verstappen has four Top 10 finishes in five starts here but he has made the Top 5 only once. The Red Bull ace has an average finish of 8.4.

Daniel Ricciardo is currently 8th in the driver’s standings but he is coming off a 4th place finish in Belgium. The 31-year old Australian has finished 4th in two out of the last four races of the season and has emerged as the familiar name after Hamilton, Bottas, and Verstappen. However, Ricciardo has not won a race since the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix. In Italy, Ricciardo has four Top 5 finishes in nine starts. He has finished in the Top 5 in three out of the last four editions of the Italian Grand Prix.

Esteban Ocon is currently 10th in the driver’s standings but he finished 5th the last time out in Belgium, his best finish ever. Ocon has finished in the Top 8 in three out of the last four races of the season. Ocon has three starts in Italy with two Top 10 finishes. He has finished 6th in the last two installments of the Italian Grand Prix. He has yet to win a race in his career and his 5th place finish last week was his best since 2017.

“Racing" Who Wins?

At this stage of the season, it’s hard not to go with Lewis Hamilton. He’s cashed out five times in seven races and is coming off two dominant weekends where he never trailed. The man is on a mission to break Schumi’s record of 91 race wins and seven world titles. Hamilton is two race wins away from tying Schumacher for the most wins in F-1 history and if he continues his dominant run, he will be on his way to winning his 7th world title. He has won four out of the last six editions of the Italian Grand Prix and was third in last year’s race.

Bottas and Verstappen will be his main threats but neither of those drivers has won this race before. If you want me to pick between the two, I will go with Bottas because he has a better resume in Italy. I think that if there’s a driver who can upend Hamilton this weekend, it will be his teammate.

When it comes to winning the race though, Hamilton has been the boring pick all-season long. The guy is just so good right now and looks unbeatable. So unless someone pulls him down from the top of the mountain, you have no choice but to go with him.

Prediction: Lewis Hamilton

Place Your Bet Here

Related Articles
0 Comments
Leave Your Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *