The Brazilian GP begins on Sunday, and this race will be poignant simply because Ayrton Senna is buried not too far away from the famous Sao Paolo circuit. Senna was perhaps the last true Formula 1 genius to ever sit behind the wheel of a racing car. Surely Michael Schumacher would never have reached his record tally of world drivers’ championships were it not for the untimely death of Senna.
This Sunday is all about the battle between current championship leader Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton. Mercedes have been dominant this season. There has been little to choose between the two Mercedes drivers, who are first and second in the drivers’ championship. Rosberg has a 19pt lead with two races to go and many people feel that Hamilton really needs to win on Sunday. The question is will this give him a competitive edge over Rosberg?
Hamilton Off To a Flyer
The early practice sessions have Hamilton a full quarter of a second faster than Rosberg. SkyBet currently go 8/11 for Hamilton to win on Sunday. With 25pts for first place and 18pts for second, it is clear that Lewis Hamilton simply has no margin for error. Rosberg has never been world champion. Surely he will never get a better chance than this. Hamilton has won back to back titles and is the defending champion.
His aggressive style means that he will surely fight hard for the title. The 19pt lead for Rosberg highlights that if he drives defensively during the seasons’ final two races, the title will surely be his. Pit strategies will play a big part. Hamilton has the experience of being in this situation before, but a 19pt gap is surely too big even for a three-time world champion to overcome.
Back Rosberg to Take the Title
Many people believe that taking odds of 2/7 isn’t a good bet. Those are the odds quoted by SkyBet for Rosberg to take the title. The problem for Hamilton is that Mercedes have been so dominant this season. Rosberg can drive within himself and preserve the car, and that will surely impact on team strategy on Sunday.
There will be far greater demands on Hamilton’s car seeing how he must effectively win the race. Despite the short odds, the value bet must be in backing Rosberg to win the drivers’ championship either on Sunday or after the final race. Hamilton requires some sort of miracle when all the facts have been taken into account.
However, that doesn’t mean that he can’t prolong the fight by winning on Sunday. Because of the fact that Hamilton will be aggressive and Rosberg defensive, Hamilton looks favourite to win the Brazilian Grand Prix if his car doesn’t break down.
