Every year, the F1 World Championship turns up in Montreal, Quebec to see the sport’s top drivers battle it out at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in the Canadian Grand Prix. This event has been held in Canada under the F1 brand since 1967 and provides Canadian fans with an opportunity to experience the thrill F1 racing locally.
F1 Betting is part of the Canadian Grand Prix experience and anyone can do it from the palm of their hand using Bodog’s mobile-friendly online sportsbook. Picking a winner from a list of many is a formidable challenge even for the most seasoned F1 bettors, as anything can happen on the track. Fortunately, that’s not the only way to bet on the Canadian Grand Prix. We’ll go over the history of the race and explain how to bet on it in our sportsbook.
Brief History of the Canadian Grand Prix
The Canadian Grand Prix started in 1961 at Mosport Park in Ontario under the Canadian Sports Car Championship series. It attracted many F1 drivers early on and was adopted by F1 in 1967, with Jack Brabham winning the first one. The race venue went back and forth between Mosport Park and the Circuit Mont-Tremblant in Quebec until 1971, when Mosport became the exclusive host. With that change, we saw three-time World Drivers’ Championship winner Jackie Stewart claim back-to-back Canadian Grand Prixs in 1971 and 1972 in a Tyrrell Ford.
After a series of crashes, safety became a concern at Mosport in the 70s, and a new venue was needed to host the Canadian Grand Prix. In 1978, it moved to Montreal on Ile Notre Dame—a man-made island used to host the World Expo in 1967. Rather fittingly, Quebec native Gilles Villeneuve won the first race there, driving a Ferrari. Four years later, Villeneuve died in a crash in the qualifying session for the Belgian Grand Prix, and the Montreal track took on the name Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
In the 90s, the Canadian Grand Prix rose in prominence due to circumstance; there were no other Grand Prix races in North America from 1993 to 2000. This was the start of Germany’s dominance in F1. Michael Schumacher won the 1994 Canadian Grand Prix, and then from 1997 to 2004, he won all but two races; one of which his brother (Ralf Schumacher) finished first and he finished second. It was the first time in F1 history that two brothers won first and second in a Grand Prix.
Germany’s dominance in the sport would eventually give way to Britain with the arrival of Lewis Hamilton. In 2007, Hamilton had his first season with F1, and his first victory of the season came at the Canadian Grand Prix. Hamilton would go on to win in Canada again in 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019, leading him to tie Schumacher for seven wins at the Canadian Grand Prix. Unfortunately for Hamilton, his attempt to break Schumacher’s Canadian Grand Prix record was foiled in 2022. Belgian-Dutch driver Max Verstappen overtook Hamilton on the 43rd lap of the circuit en route to victory. Hamilton finished third, roughly seven seconds after Verstappen.
How to bet on the Canadian Grand Prix
Betting on the Canadian Grand Prix is easy in our sportsbook. The most popular way to do it is to bet on a driver to win the race outright. Before the race begins, all of the competitors are listed on the odds board, with their odds displayed in the American format; this can be converted to decimal and fractional odds using a toggle. Here is an example of what the odds board could look like:
Max Verstappen +110
Charles Leclerc +140
Lewis Hamilton +850
A much bigger list would be available for the Canadian Grand Prix, but we’ll just look at the top three favourites to explain how the payouts work. Since all of these drivers have positive American odds, they show how much money you would win if you placed a $100 bet (bigger and smaller bets are scaled accordingly). Bets on Red Bull’s Verstappen would pay $110, while bets on Ferrari’s top driver, Charles Leclerc would pay $140. Bets on Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton would pay $850.
You could also bet on the car manufacturer. Under the outright winner, there are Canadian Grand Prix odds listed for the winning car. They might look something like this:
Red Bull -140
Ferrari +150
Mercedes +550
This offers a little extra security, as either the top driver or secondary driver of a team could pass the finish line first, and you’d still get paid. As a result, the payouts are usually slightly lower than if you were to pick the driver as an outright winner. In our example above, Red Bull is favoured by -140; the negative odds show how much you’d need to bet to win $100, so in the case of Red Bull bets, you’d need to bet $140. Ferrari, meanwhile, has positive odds and would pay $150 on a $100 bet. Mercedes would pay $550.
FAQ for Canadian Grand Prix Betting
What if both drivers in an H2H bet fail to finish the race?
If both of the drivers fail to finish the race in a head-2-head bet, the driver who completes more laps is the winner. If both drivers retire on the same lap, the bet is a push and all money is returned.
What happens if there are changes made after the winners are declared?
The winners at the podium presentation (official FIA classification) are used to determine winning bets. Any subsequent changes (penalties, disqualifications, etc.) have no impact on bet results.
What happens if the race date changes?
The race must happen within seven days of the original date. Otherwise, wagers have no action and bets are returned.
