Setting the stage for Abu Dhabi

Hamilton, the victor at Sau Paolo, had already clinched his second straight Drivers Championship (and fourth in five years) and now Mercedes has wrapped up its fifth Constructors Championship in a row, as well.

Ferrari had a disappointing day in Brazil, on the whole, even though Kimi Raikkonen finished on the podium. Despite qualifying second, Sebastian Vettel finished a distant and disappointing sixth. By the time the drivers take the grid in Abu Dhabi, it will have been nearly three months since the German last won a race (the Belgian GP). In seven races since then, he’s only finished in the top-two once (Mexican GP).

Yet, while sites online will show that there is no clear consensus of who has better odds, it is noted that the top two favorites are none other than Hamilton and Vettel. With that said, find a book from this list of betting sites from mytopsportsbooks.com that favors your pick before you make your bet. Some list Hamilton as the favorite at +150 and Vettel close behind at +350 while others list both are favorites at +150. Betting on Hamilton seems to be the safe and predictable choice but choosing Vettel might give you more value if he does win.

Not only do this season’s recent results favor the Brit, so does the recent history at Abu Dhabi, itself.

Mercedes has won four straight in the Emirates, including wins by Hamilton in 2014 and 2016, plus another chequered flag for ex-teammate Nico Rosberg in 2015 and current teammate Valtteri Bottas last year.

Vettel does have three wins in Abu Dhabi on his resume, but those are ancient history now. He won the first two editions in 2009 and 2010, and then another in 2013. All three of those came when he was still driving a then-unparalleled Red Bull.

After making grand pronouncements about the state of the Ferrari ahead of Brazil, he failed to deliver. While the third-place performance from the outgoing Raikkonen does bode well for Vettel’s car, the Ferrari will also have to hold off the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo, who finished 2nd and 4th respectively in Brazil.

The Red Bull was running faster than even Hamilton’s Mercedes in Brazil, and Verstappen (who won in Mexico, don’t forget) would have made it two victories in a row if not for a disastrous collision with a lapped Esteban Ocon. Verstappen has been trending up ever since Hungary and now has six top-three finishes in the last eight races. Apart from Hamilton, he’s been the second-best driver on the grid in the last half of the season.

The Dutchman, however, isn’t even in the top three of the initial odds lists, sitting at 15/2 (+750), behind Bottas at 13/2 (+650). Whether the 21-year-old can prove odds-makers wrong and claim his sixth career win has become one of the more intriguing storylines in Abu Dhabi with the championships decided.