With the final race of the 2019 Formula 1 season set to get underway on Sunday and this year’s championship all wrapped up as the legendary Lewis Hamilton took home his sixth career championship, it’s time to take a look at the drivers that stand the best chance of finding their way into the winner’s circle this weekend. With Hamilton looking to bag his fifth win at Yas Marina Circuit and his second straight, let’s find out who’s looking like they could beat out the incomparable reigning champ.
2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds, Preview & Picks
- When: Sunday, December 1st, 2019 at 8am ET
- Where: Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- TV: Fox Sports
- Live Stream: Formula1.com
Valtteri Bottas
- 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds: +500
The 30-year-old Bottas didn’t finish in Brazil, but he did win the previous race on U.S. soil while also winning in japan two races prior to that. Bottas won this race back in 2017 while finishing fifth a year ago. Still, the veteran looks like a bit of a long shot to me, seeing as how he’s recorded two retirements in six career appearances in this event while also finishing 13th in 2015 and 15th in 2013.
Charles Leclerc
- 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds: +450
LeClerc and Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel had an embarrassing crash down the stretch in Brazil to finish a distant 18th. The talented LeClerc finished seventh here a year ago in his debut at Abu Dahbi but he hasn’t been on the podium in each of his last four races. Still, after winning back-to-back in Belgium and Italy and following those wins up with a second place finish in Russia, the 22-year-old LeClerc will have a chance.
Sebastian Vettel
- 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds: +650
The 32-year-old Vettel trails Leclerc by just 19 points despite failing to finish three of his past five races. The four-time Formula One champion (2010-2013) finished second here a year ago following a pair of third place finishes in each of the previous two years. Vettel has has won this race three times and reached the podium on seven occasions.
Max Verstappen
- 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds: +650
33-year-old Max Verstappen earned his third win of the season by taking the checkered flag in Brazil. Now, just 11 points head of Leclerc in the battle for third place, Verstappen will be going all out for the win. Verstappen finished third place in this race a year ago and has finished in the top five in each of the past three years despite starting from the third row each time. A minimum third-place finish on Sunday will guarantee a third-place finish for Verstappen in the F1 Drivers Standings.
Lewis Hamilton
- 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Odds: +175
With F1’s biggest superstar has already claimed his sixth career Formula One title with a seventh-place finish at Brazil, the 34-year-old Hamilton still has some good reasons to shoot for the win in this season-ending event. The Englishman sits just 21 points shy of the Formula One record for most points in a season, which he set last year. Hamilton can eclipse that mark with a victory on Sunday.
