Home  »     »   Safety Cars and a Perez podium: Our F1 expert shares Monaco tips

Safety Cars and a Perez podium: Our F1 expert shares Monaco tips

| 24.05.2017

The jewel in Formula 1’s crown, the Monaco Grand Prix is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated race of the season.

Full of glitz and glamour, Monaco is an amazing event off the track but the on-track spectacle of cars threading their way through the barriers around the tight streets is just as impressive.

It often leads to processional races, but drivers are always just one mistake away from retirement.

Monte Carlo is famed for its casino, but here are three other options to consider if you fancy a bet this weekend.

A First Lap Safety Car @ 1/2

Perhaps one of the most obvious tips you’ll get all year, but the Safety Car probability is extremely high in Monaco due to the confined nature of the track.

Very few incidents pass by without the need for the Safety Car to slow the field, and the first lap is a prime candidate.

With the wider cars this season, it will be even more difficult for the field to navigate its way through the opening corner safely at the start of the race.

A Max Verstappen DNF @ 11/4

Max Verstappen has provided numerous spectacular moments – even in Monaco – but he has yet to see the checkered flag as a result of errors in the Principality.

2015 saw him run into the back of Romain Grosjean and have a heavy crash at Ste Devote, while he hit the wall on the climb to the Casino last year after a brilliant recovery drive until then.

That recovery was required due to a crash at the Swimming Pool in qualifying, and with a car lacking downforce compared to its rivals, Verstappen could try and overdrive the Red Bull again.

Sergio Perez on the podium @ 10/1

The outside bet in Spain paid off with Fernando Alonso reaching Q3, but he won’t be in Monaco so we’ll look elsewhere for a long shot.

Force India made a step forward in outright pace in Spain and has scored points with both cars in every race so far.

Perez always seems to deliver when there’s a sniff of a podium and with Williams tending to struggle in Monaco, Force India could be the fourth fastest team outright this weekend.

So if there are issues for the top three – as in Barcelona – Perez may well pick up the pieces exactly like 12 months ago.

Click here for all the latest Monaco GP markets and odds.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing

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Author

Chris Medland

Chris is F1 correspondent for RACER.com and magazine as well as a contributor for F1 Racing and AutosportME. When he’s not chasing F1 around the world he’s usually found in a less glamorous setting, keeping an eye on the fortunes of Yeovil Town.