A Mercedes win in German GP is nailed on, but for which driver?
Published:With alternate hosting duties gripping the German Grand Prix since 2008, the Hockenheimring holds just the 34th race there when the 2014 Formula 1 season rolls through this year.
With Mercedes dominating the constructors championship to date – they are 158 points ahead of Red Bull in the race for that particular gong – Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg are clearly well placed to deliver the first home win for the German manufacturer since 1954.
Unsurprisingly then, they make up two of our three best bets to take the chequered flag:
Having capitalised on Rosberg’s retirement from a gearbox failure in Silverstone to take his home Grand Prix last time out, Hamilton is Ladbrokes’ favourite to deny his teammate the chance of experiencing the same jubilation.
Two career victories at this event – one at each venue – also adds weight to his claims on the top spot in the betting and the determination to cut the gap on his teammate in the drivers’ championship should be enough to see him feature prominently.
Only two Germans, the Schumacher brothers, have had the pleasure of winning their home Grand Prix at Hockenheim (Sebastian Vettel won last year’s edition in Nurburg) and Rosberg hardly has a record to write home about.
His finishes from seven attempts to land the race read RET, 10, 4, 8, 7, 10, 9 and his gearbox failure at Silverstone could be an early sign of his title bid falling apart.
No driver in the field has more experience of winning in Germany than Ferrari’s Spaniard, who has claimed three triumphs on this circuit – including the last two.
A car that has been some way off the pace this season hasn’t allowed the two-time champion to challenge at the right end of the drivers’ championship this season, but his experience should be enough to make him a decent each-way bet, with Ladbrokes paying out on the first two at 1/3 odds.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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