The 2022 Formula 1 season travels to Budapest this weekend after a dramatic race in France. Fresh from his victory, Max Verstappen enters the Hungarian GP as a +110 favorite. Last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix enacted some of the most dramatic storylines of the season, as first-lap collisions called the red flag out and saw Lewis Hamilton as the lone starter on the grid while the rest of the drivers stopped for dry tires. The Mercedes strategy forced Hamilton to pit early, which opened up the race for Esteban Ocon to take his first career Grand Prix victory.

As we look forward to another weekend of Formula 1 action, Nitrobetting focuses on the top Hungarian GP storylines. Revel in more plot twists and action-packed racing with Round 13 of 22 about to go underway.

Top Storylines Ahead Of 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix

What are your predictions for the #HungarianGP ?????

Pole Position:

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Driver of the Day:

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READ MORE: 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix F1 Odds, Preview, and Prediction

Verstappen wants competition

In the wake of Leclerc’s crash, the fight for the win effectively walked out of the picture. The rivalry between Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s challenger Charles Leclerc could have painted thrilling storylines if not for these mishaps.

After recording his 27th career victory, Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase said “Well done, Max. Well closed off. Shame, I think it would have been a good race. Nevertheless, you brought it home.” Verstappen would later tell the media: “It was really unlucky for Charles and I’m glad he’s OK; it could have been a really fun race because both cars were so quick!”

I’m sure Formula 1 fans would have wanted a tighter finish. But, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner did reiterate that Max had things covered regardless of Leclerc’s crash. The Belgian-Dutch driver now holds onto a comfortable 53-point lead as he enters the Hungarian GP as the favorite to win.

Ferrari walking on a tightrope

Last weekend’s race could have given Charles Leclerc a much-needed win to close down Max Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers Championship. But after crashing out on Lap 18, the deficit grew larger as he finished with zero points for the third time this season. The early-season affliction developed into critical damages for the Scuderia, who now sits 63 points behind Verstappen.

Nevertheless, the man from Monaco comes in as a (+150) favorite to win the Hungarian GP. He has another shot at another pole position with pace and hardware that could cope with Red Bull. A victory at Budapest gets him back on track this season.

Can Lewis Hamilton continue his Hungarian GP domination?

Seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton enjoyed more success than any other driver on this circuit. He won eight of the 14 races he appeared in then, and another victory carves his name in history books for most wins by a driver at a Grand Prix. However, it’s a tall order for Hamilton and Mercedes, while they struggle to keep pace with Red Bull and Ferrari. Since the introduction of the 2022 cars, new aero, and larger tires, we’ve seen a significant drop in their pace.

Development takes time, but Mercedes managed to maintain a positive trend since the season opener. He joins the race as a (+1,200) sleeper pick. Moreover, Mercedes announced the introduction of major upgrades in the upcoming race. Mercedes secured their first-ever double podium finish for the team, and having this momentum helps the Englishman close the gaps and chase his ninth Hungarian GP win.

Alpine looks to pull away from McLaren

Following several revisions to their car, Alpine appears to be improving the A522 one step at a time. The gains are marginal but effective. We’ve seen the team deliver better results in the Spanish GP and now the French GP after taking fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship. It seems that the French team is on a steadier pace after an underwhelming start to the season and is now ahead of their midfield rivals.

In addition, there seems to be no stopping the 40-year-old Fernando Alonso from scoring points. The Spaniard is a decent sleeper pick at (+2,500). He’s on his way to an 11th finish in the points following a great run at the French GP, finishing P6. From being tied on 81 points before the previous race, Alpine now has the edge over rivals McLaren.

Haas to introduce the final set of upgrades

Team principal Günther Steiner announced that Haas will no longer introduce upgrades to the VF-22 after Hungary. The team will then focus on working on the 2023 car in August, with no upgrades planned during the summer break.

Steiner said in an interview, “We are bringing upgrades, which are developments, in Hungary, And then we finish it there.

“We think we’ll finish it there because we need to start to focus on next year because there is much more gain in that than keeping on pushing it, putting money into this year,” he added.

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