Max Verstappen and Red Bull favored to repeat as champions in 2023

Jun 19, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen of The Netherlands stands during the national anthems after winning the Montreal Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports

The 2023 Formula One Championship is set to kick off this Sunday at the Bahrain International Circuit, and Max Verstappen enters the season as the favorite.

Per odds posted on Vegas Insider, Verstappen is favored to repeat at champion with odds set at -138. He is followed by Lewis Hamilton at +350, and Charles Leclerc at +450.

While Hamilton, the seven-time world champion, had a down year in 2022, he has won the championship in three of the last five years.

Verstappen, the reigning two-time champion looks to continue where he left off in 2022. His RB19 looked impressive in the last testing session at Bahrain.

Charles Leclerc, who finished 2nd in 2022, set the fastest lap time during preseason testing. He had a time of 1:31.024 at Bahrain. But he will need to cut down on his mistakes if wants to make a run at dethroning Verstappen in 2023.

Following Leclerc in the odds are George Russell at +1000, Carlos Sainz Jr. at +2000, and Sergio Perez at +2500.

Of course, there are a lot of things that can change between Sunday and the end of the season, but the 2023 season looks promising. It will be interesting to see if the championship remains a 3-team race among, Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes, or if an another team will emerge and challenge Red Bull and Verstappen for the 2023 title.

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