The 2022 Spanish GP was action packed from the very first lap with Lewis Hamilton, who had won the previous five races in Catalunya, colliding with Kevin Magnusson pushing the Brit down to 19th place.
Hamilton would eventually work his way through the field to finish fifth, meanwhile chaos unfolded at the front of the race which eventually resulted in a Red Bull one two and George Russell ensuring that Mercedes got their seventh podium in as many years in Barcelona.
All eyes will be on the Mercedes this weekend in Spain, particularly the impact of the upgrades that were made to Mercedes-AMG F1 W14, in time for the Imola Grand Prix, which was rained out.
Although Hamilton and Russell got a feel of the improvements in Monaco, the real results will be seen in Catalunya, on the more traditional race track.
Spanish GP Qualifying Best Bet
All signs point to Max Verstappen taking pole position at the Spanish Grand Prix, after his miraculous hot lap in Monaco just last week, which certainly ranks at the top of the best qualifying laps I have seen in my life.
The Dutchman has qualified in the top 3 in the last 3 races in Catalunya, but with the speed and dominance of the RB-19 this season I can not see any other team or driver for that matter taking pole.
Looking for a little value, I also expect Fernado Alonso to qualify well again and at 2.40 to qualify in the top 3 at his home grand prix is great odds, considering the Spaniard has qualified either 2nd or 3rd in 50% of the races so far this season.
Spanish GP Best Bet
The Red Bulls are tipped to occupy the top two steps of the podium in Catalunya as they did in 2022. As it has been so far in 2023, the excitement will be predicting who will stand beside them.
The Ferrari showed great pace in 2022 and if it wasn’t for turbo issues, the outcome may have been different for Leclerc. However, Fernando Alonso and the Aston Martin AMR23 are hard to tip against for third, especially this weekend at Alonso’s home race.
I am expecting the upgrades to the Mercedes to have an instant impact here and predict that the changes to the aerodynamics of their side pods and front suspension will come into full effect, putting them into a position to fight for a podium.
Mercedes traditionally do very well in Spain and I expect both cars to finish top 6, which they have done since 2018 in Barcelona.
Spanish GP Head To Head Best Bet
Lewis Hamilton vs George Russell
Lewis Hamilton has won the Spanish GP six times, a record he shares with the great Michael Schumacher.
In 2022, the seven-time world champion sliced through the field from 19th, after his lap one incident with Magnusson, all the way to fourth place, although ran out of tyres which allowed Carlos Sainz to pass with two laps to go.
George Russell did get on the podium in 2022, but with the new upgrades to the car I expect Hamilton to rely heavily on his experience to get the most out of the AMG F1 W14 and outperform his teammate.