History of Formula One
Formula One began in 1950 when the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) created the World Championship. Although there had been forms of racing before this, the creation of the Championship meant there was an official competition schedule and a chance to be a ‘World Champion’. The first Championship race took place at the British circuit, Silverstone, in May 1950.
As the popularity of Formula One has grown over the years, so has the number of races and competitors. The Championship acts as a stage for some of the world’s biggest car manufacturers, such as Ferrari and Mercedes, to compete against each other. The sport has also made household names of some of its drivers, including Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton.
The cars have changed drastically from their early beginnings as the technology and aerodynamics have improved. Formula One speed involves high risk, and there have been some unfortunate casualties through the years. So, with the innovation of the machinery, the sport has also been a pioneer for safety in motorsport.
What is Formula One?
Quite simply, Formula One is the race to be the quickest combination of man and machine. It is renowned for being the pinnacle of motorsport and has always pushed the boundaries with engineering and technology.
The World Championship runs annually, with races taking place on various circuits across the world. There are over 20 races in a season, visiting some of the sport’s historical circuits such as Silverstone and Monza along with some of the modern-day tracks in Singapore and Abu Dhabi.
There are two Championships that are competed for across the season: the overall drivers’ World Championship and the constructors’ trophy. Currently, there are 20 drivers who race for 10 different teams.
A qualifying session is run the day before each race to determine the starting order. The race then takes place and Championship points are awarded to the winner of each round, down to and including the driver who finishes in 10th place. Over the course of the season, the points are accumulated, and the overall champion is the one who scores the most points.
How to bet on Formula One
There are many ways to bet on Formula One to give some additional excitement for fans and bettors alike.
The simplest way to bet on the sport is to pick an overall winner, whether that is in the Championship or at each race. You can even bet on who will start the race in pole position following qualifying.
As the sport has become more popular with betting audiences, the different things that can be bet on have increased, including the numbers of laps led in a race to how many pit stops a driver will make.
The ever-evolving nature of Formula One means that the rules and regulations can change from one season to another, so it’s important to keep an eye on what’s going on. Just because a driver or team won a race in the previous season does not mean that they are guaranteed to be successful there again. So, make sure that you do some thorough research before parting with your money.
Although the results in Formula 1, and most forms of motorsport, are largely decided by budget and backing, it is not unheard of for an underdog to upset the form. Look at the famous Brawn F1 team’s World Championship win – a superdog pick if ever there was one!
