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Justin Carter's DraftKings and FanDuel DFS lineup picks for the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix. Read our daily fantasy F1 advice and sleepers analysis.
Formula 1 heads to Austria this weekend for the Austrian Grand Prix at Red Bull Ring. Among active drivers, Max Verstappen has owned this track, winning five times here. Lewis Hamilton has two wins at the track as does Valtteri Bottas, while Charles Leclerc was the 2022 winner here, leading 51 laps while Verstappen finished 1.532 seconds back in second.
Last weekend, F1 was in Spain for the Spanish Grand Prix, where we got another one-two finish between Verstappen and McLaren driver Lando Norris, who looks like his chief rival this season. That makes four consecutive Verstappen wins to feature Norris as the second-place car. Norris does have a win in that span though, topping the podium in Miami.
Below you will find our Formula 1 DraftKings DFS lineup picks for the Austrian Grand Prix on 6/30/24, with the slate locking at 9:00 a.m. EDT. If you have any questions or want to talk about Formula 1, you can find me on Twitter at @juscarts.
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How Does Formula 1 Fantasy Work?
Here's how the scoring and format work for F1 DFS on DraftKings. You'll pick five drivers and a constructor. One of those drivers will be your captain, who earns you 1.5 times the points but also costs 1.5 times as much as they usually cost. For the constructor, you're choosing one of the F1 teams.
So here's how the scoring works. Your driver only gets points if they finish in the top 10. Here's a chart for how that breaks down:
| Finishing Spot | DraftKings Points |
|---|---|
| 1 | 25 |
| 2 | 18 |
| 3 | 15 |
| 4 | 12 |
| 5 | 10 |
| 6 | 8 |
| 7 | 6 |
| 8 | 4 |
| 9 | 2 |
| 10 | 1 |
In addition, the driver with the fastest lap of the race gets three points. You get 0.1 points per lap led, five points for beating your teammate, one point for being classified at the finish (finished 90% of the race, essentially), and points for place differential.
Finish three spots higher than your grid position and you get two points. Finish five better and you get three points. Finish 10 better to get five points. You also lose points for a negative place differential, starting at three spots.
The constructor points work the same way, with some added points if both cars do well. It's confusing, but for Formula 1 DFS to work, it probably had to be confusing. Now that we've gone over that, let's talk drivers. Here's what I've put together as a kind of base lineup.
Captain: Nico Hulkenberg ($6.0K)
Starts Ninth
I think we're in for a dominant Max Verstappen race, so I'm trying to save money at the captain spot to afford Verstappen. That's where Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg comes into play. He's on a streak of four consecutive 11th-place finishes, just one spot out of the points. In fact, since he placed 16th at Bahrain to open the year, Hulkenberg has finished between ninth and 11th in every single race, earning points for defeating teammate Kevin Magnussen in all those starts. If I'm going with a punt at captain, Hulkenberg feels like a solid one.
Constructor: Mercedes ($9.5K)
This marks a $2.5K jump over the last three races now for Mercedes as the team has found some speed this summer. The team has earned the fastest lap in three of the last four Grand Prix and has 30-plus DraftKings points in back-to-back races. Both drivers have finished on the podium once in the last two events, and the other was fourth in both. Really good production lately for Mercedes.
Max Verstappen ($15.4K)
Starts First
The field has caught Red Bull, but the field still is chasing Max Verstappen. I expect them to keep chasing him on Sunday in Austria after a strong weekend for the defending champion.
Yes!!! Lovely day 👌
The car was very enjoyable to drive, thank you team @redbullracing 💪 Feeling this kind of support here is amazing 🇦🇹🙏 Bring on the race! pic.twitter.com/fEj24jtc7J
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) June 29, 2024
He was fastest in FP1, then won the pole for the Sprint race, then won the Sprint race, and then won the pole for the main event. Verstappen goes for a full weekend sweep at the Red Bull Ring, a track where he's won five times in F1. Last year, Verstappen was on pole here and led 61 of the 71 laps on his way to a 5.155-second victory over Charles Leclerc.
George Russell ($9.6K)
Starts Third
George Russell comes into this weekend with three consecutive finishes of fifth or better and has been the top finisher for Mercedes in two of those races. Overall, he's earned his team's five fantasy points for defeating his teammate seven times while Lewis Hamilton has earned them three times. Russell finished fourth in the Sprint race behind Verstappen and the two McLaren cars.
Esteban Ocon ($4.4K)
Starts 10th
Alpine has really turned things around this month. The team didn't have a double points day in the first eight races of the season but has them back-to-back this month in Canada and Spain.
Another Q3 ✅ great job to the team on a well optimised Quali. now let’s fight for those points tomorrow 🎯 pic.twitter.com/qrKIvO7MdQ
— Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) June 29, 2024
Esteban Ocon starts 10th on Sunday, while teammate Pierre Gasly starts 13th. Ocon has back-to-back 10th-place finishes, failing to earn the "defeated teammate" points in those because Gasly did just a smidge better, but Ocon has a 6-4 lead this year when it comes to being the top Alpine car.
Ocon was fifth here in 2022. Can he have another strong run in Austria?
Daniel Ricciardo ($4.2K)
Starts 11th
🚨AUSTRIA QUALIFYING - 2023 VS. 2024
🟢 Faster than in 2023
RB: -0.495s
Red Bull: -0.077s🔴 Slower than in 2023
Mercedes: +0.021s
McLaren: +0.060s
Alpine: +0.104s
Kick Sauber: +0.167s
Haas: +0.172s
Williams: +0.349s
Ferrari: +0.412s
Aston Martin: +0.746s pic.twitter.com/u4PEAdCcRZ— Holiness (@F1BigData) June 29, 2024
For much of this season, Yuki Tsunoda has looked like the best driver for RB F1 Team, but Daniel Ricciardo has finished ahead of Tsunoda two races in a row now, including posting an eighth-place finish in the Canadian Grand Prix. Ricciardo starts Sunday's race in 11th, while Tsunoda is 14th on the grid.
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