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There is a small, but active set of betting markets for the race so let’s look at the candidates for this weekend as we head to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin Texas.
Marc Marquez
Marquez starts as the hot favourite to win in Texas with EnergyBet offering odds of 17/100 on a victory for the Spaniard. Not only is he the reigning champion, the 25 year old has won the MotoGP World Championships on four occasions across the last five years and remains the odds on pick to make it five from six.
However, it’s not been the best of starts for the Honda rider. Things started positively enough in Qatar with a second placed finish but in the follow up race in Argentina, Marquez finished way down the list and out of the points in eighteenth place. Over the course of a long season, quality will come through but it’s been a slow start and clearly there is no guarantee that Marc Marquez will be first over the line in the US.
Behind the favourite things are very tight for this race with Italian riders the most likely threat according to the bookies. Andrea Dovizioso is on offer at 6/1 while his compatriot, the great Valentino Rossi is marginally further back at 7/1 and both of those prices are with RedZoneSports.
Rossi is a seven-time World Champion who is widely regarded as the best rider to have ever graced the sport but he may be third favourite based on reputation rather than current form. The 39 year old secured a podium finish with a third place in Qatar but followed that with a 19th in Argentina to suggest he should be out at a longer price. In the case of Dovizioso, the Ducati man won in Qatar and was sixth last time out to currently stand second in the Riders’ standings so he seems like a more tangible punt.
It’s early days as we keep mentioning and while we’ve worked our way through two races so far, there are still 17 events to go but it may still be surprising that the current leader in the World Championship is some way down the market for this weekend.
Britain’s Cal Crutchlow followed up a fourth place in Qatar with a win in Argentina last time out and he now leads the Riders’ Championship by three points from Dovizioso. For the Grand Prix of the Americas, Crutchlow is out at odds of 11/1 with SportNation and while he seems unlikely to hold on to first place for the remainder of the season, current form makes him a good option for Texas on Sunday.
Other interesting prices in the outsider bunch include Maverick Vinales at 17/2 with SportNation and Johann Zarco at 10/1 with EnergyBet. Zarco and Vinales are third and fourth respectively in the title standings and after positive starts to the season, they could be decent Each Way options at the very least.
While the list of active bookmakers for the next race in the 2018 MotoGP season is a little restricted, things get busier as we move on to the outright Riders’ Championship betting. Once again, Marc Marquez is our favourite and the reigning champion is available at best odds of 3/4 with Unibet and 888Sport to retain his title.
His nearest challenger is Andrea Dovizioso at a top price of 11/4 with William Hill and Betway and then we have a big gap to Valentino Rossi at his best of 10/1 with bet365 and MarathonBet. From there, the prices really drift and the current leader in the title race, Cal Crutchlow, is down at best odds of 50/1 with Unibet and 888Sport although he is as short as 10/1 elsewhere so expect those prices to be adjusted very soon.
Ahead of Crutchlow we have Maverick Vinales at a top price of 14/1 with 188Bet and then Johann Zarco follows at a best of 20/1 with Unibet and 888Sport.
In this market, Marquez hasn’t always been a fast starter and like ourselves, you may prefer to wait for the next two to three races before committing to this bet although those odds of 3/4 will shorten further if he does pick up any wins in that time.
In the 2017 version of this weekend’s race, Marc Marquez came through in first place to continue a remarkable series of wins. This event was only added to the MotoGP calendar in 2013 since when, Marquez has won every single edition across five long years.
We think that is a strong indicator as to how Sunday’s race will develop but at those odds of 17/100, there is very little interest for us in the straight win market. It’s worth noting that Valentino Rossi was second here last year in what was a positive start for the multiple world champion so he could be an option in the each way betting at the very least.
And, it’s the each way betting where we will make our confirmed tip for Sunday’s race. We expect Marc Marquez to win so by all means look to take a small profit on the Spaniard but we’re punting on Cal Crutchlow for a place. The Brit has started 2018 well and based on current form he’s a good option for the podium.
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