Unfortunately, the news of Lewis Hamilton’s likely grid penalty at the 2016 Belgium Grand Prix came after most F1 experts submitted their predictions for this weekend’s race. Nevertheless, let’s still take a look at the picks and predictions the experts made prior to the news, and who could stand to benefit at Spa.
And for more Formula One coverage, check out our complete preview of the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix here.
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Experts Picks and Predictions for the 2016 Formula One Belgian Grand Prix
F1i.com
EXPERT
PODIUM PREDICTION
Chris Medland
1st – Lewis Hamilton
2nd – Nico Rosberg
3rd – Max Verstappen
Chris Medland of F1i.com has gone with the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg to take the first two steps on the podium. However, he, like the rest of the experts, made this prediction before the news of Hamilton’s grid penalty broke.
That development could be the opening for Medland’s third-place pick, Max Verstappen, to go and grab one of the top two places. The Red Bull driver will no doubt be amped up to race this weekend with a large contingent of his Dutch countrymen likely to make the short journey to Belgium to cheer him on.
Bleacher Report
EXPERT
PODIUM PREDICTION
Oliver Harden
1st – Lewis Hamilton
2nd – Kimi Raikkonen
3rd – Nico Rosberg
Meanwhile, Oliver Harden of Bleacher Report made another Hamilton win one of his five “bold” predictions. However, it remains to be seen if the grid penalty will be enough to change his mind.
Regardless, Harden did not pick Rosberg, to go second despite picking the German Mercedes driver to take pole ahead of Hamilton. Instead, one of Harden’s other bold predictions was that Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen will split the Mercedes drivers on the podium. Raikkonen, of course, has a sparkling record at Spa. The Fin has claimed four victories in his past 11 Belgian GP appearances, and has stood on the podium five times.
Admittedly, Kimi’s last three races at Spa haven’t been very good, but his form entering this race – he outqualified Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel at Silverstone and Hockenheim – has convinced Harden that Kimi will be back on the podium this year.
Fox Sports
EXPERT
WINNER
Alex Yoong
Nico Rosberg
Unsurprisingly, Fox Sports analyst Alex Yoong is also quite bullish on Mercedes, which he sees as the team to beat. He believes the makeup of the Mercedes cars will perform quite nicely in Spa, which is a horsepower track and has fast-flowing corners.
However, he’s not going with Hamilton to win despite being unaware of the Brit’s grid penalty. Instead, he’s going with Rosberg to get the much-needed victory and get back in the hunt for the championship. That pick sure looks a lot better now that Hamilton will be further lower down the grid.
Meanwhile, Yoong thinks the two Red Bull drivers – Verstappen and 2014 Belgian GP winner Daniel Ricciardo – should be Mercedes’ top rivals once again. He also sees Spa’s notoriously unpredictable weather possibly playing a part in Red Bull charging into contention.
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