Kimi Antonelli is well on his way to winning his first World Drivers' Championship at the age of 20 after his latest victory in the Spanish Grand Prix propelled him 81 points clear at the top of the standings.
The Italian had some good fortune in the first race at the new Madring circuit as the timing of a safety-car deployment was harsh on race leader Lando Norris, who ended up in a fast-finishing third place, but Antonelli now has eight wins this season and is showing no signs of feeling any pressure yet.
The Baku City Circuit in Baku brought a win for Max Verstappen last season and the Dutch driver is still seeking his first victory in 2026 as the F1 teams return to the tricky venue, which features some very tight corners and an extremely long straightaway.
Azerbaijan Grand Prix betting picks and predictions
Kimi Antonelli to win (+120)
Having had no track form to work with for the last round at the new Madrid circuit, F1 bettors are back on more familiar territory this week at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where the cars will be racing for the 10th time.
The most important information you need this week is that the race is taking place one day earlier than the usual weekly schedule, so practice will be on Thursday, qualifying on Friday and the grand prix on Saturday.
As for the likely winner, it's hard to argue with the oddsmakers who have made championship leader Kimi Antonelli the favorite to secure his ninth victory of the season.
His Mercedes car has proved to be strong on all types of tracks and four of his wins so far have come on street circuits in Miami, Canada, Monaco and Spain.
Antonelli did not quite have the fastest car in Madrid, where Norris had the edge with a brilliant final lap in qualifying and looked the quickest driver on the track throughout the race.
However, the McLaren man looks short in the betting this week given that he has never finished on the podium in Baku and his seventh place in the race last year was his worst finish of the year in a race that he completed.
George Russell podium finish (+100)
George Russell began the season as the favorite to win the world championship and took the opening event in Australia, but he has been well and truly upstaged by his younger Mercedes teammate Antonelli since then, with his only other success coming in Austria.
Russell was only fifth in Spain, but he had been one place behind Antonelli when finishing third in the Netherlands and second in Italy in the previous two rounds, and he also won the sprint race at Zandvoort.
The British driver also has a solid record in Baku, having finished second to Verstappen there last season and third to Oscar Piastri the year before.
He would hope to be in the mix to earn his third win of the season, but looks a strong option for a podium finish.
Franco Colapinto points finish (+110)
Franco Colapinto recorded an excellent seventh-place finish at the Spanish Grand Prix and the Argentinian driver can add to his points tally in Azerbaijan.
The Alpine driver had been disappointed to finish only ninth in the previous race in Italy, but has now been in the points in four of the last six rounds and is 12th in the standings after claiming his eighth top-10 finish in 14 races.
Having earlier finished seventh in Miami and sixth in Montreal, Colapinto has a strong record on street circuits and he was eighth in Azerbaijan in his second F1 race for Williams in 2024, collecting his first points at this track.
Audi are bringing upgrades for this race but Alpine have had the edge in the battle with their midfield rivals in recent races and Colapinto should be challenging for the top 10 again.
Azerbaijan Grand Prix odds
Kimi Antonelli | +120 |
Lando Norris | +375 |
George Russell | +600 |
Max Verstappen | +700 |
Lewis Hamilton | +800 |
Charles Leclerc | +1000 |
Oscar Piastri | +2800 |
Isack Hadjar | +10000 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
