F1 2026 season preview, odds & predictions

• Ladbrokes looks ahead to the 2026 Formula One season, with odds & predictions

• George Russell priced as the early favourite to win his first-ever World Championship title

• Ferrari drivers backed to impress, with Cadillac expected to struggle on the 22-man grid

Ladbrokes shares an in-depth preview ahead of the F1 2026 season, with a look at the odds and favourites - plus a couple of bold Formula One predictions.

Lando Norris finally got his hands on the World Championship in 2025, pipping Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri to the trophy and becoming the first McLaren driver to win the title since Lewis Hamilton in 2008.

The pre-season odds suggest Mercedes' George Russell is in pole position to claim the 2026 F1 World Championship title, which would be his first, but with such an exciting year ahead, twists & turns will set up another spectacular season of Formula One.

Read on for our 2026 F1 preview, and be sure to check out the full F1 schedule!

• Opening race: Australian Grand Prix (March 8, 2026)

• Final race: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (December 6, 2026)

• Reigning world champion: Lando Norris (McLaren)

• 2026 World Championship favourite: George Russell (Mercedes)

The newest Formula One season brings us 24 weeks of rip-roaring action from Melbourne to Abu Dhabi, with new guidelines, new teams, new drivers, and new F1 records to be broken.

Six Sprint races add to the drama throughout the year, and with updated approaches ensuring the cars will be faster than ever, the stage is set for an unmissable year of racing around the world. An even playing field also means the battle for World Championship glory could be one of the best we've seen, with drivers from Russell to Verstappen, Hamilton to Norris, Piastri to Antonelli all fancying their chances of writing their names into the history books.

The season officially starts in Melbourne on Friday, March 6, 2026, and while the Australian GP is only the first of 24 races, the perfect start could set up the perfect campaign - as we saw with Lando Norris last year.

Speaking of Lando Norris, the 2025 champion is once again tipped by the bookies to be right in the hunt for the world title - but he certainly isn't the pre-season favourite.

Mercedes' George Russell is the early favourite to win a maiden World Championship title according to the bookies, with the Brit expected to back up his best-ever season in 2025 with a consistently clinical campaign, edging out second-favourite Max Verstappen to the trophy.

Verstappen failed to win the World Championship for the first time in five years last time out, but is predicted to enjoy another season battling at the top of the Drivers' Standings. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton come next in the bookies' odds, with the Ferraris looking rapid in testing - renewing hope of a first-ever podium in Ferrari red for seven-time champion Hamilton.

Kimi Antonelli and reigning champion Lando Norris both follow with odds of 10/1, while Oscar Piastri - who led the Drivers' Standings for most of 2025 - has been priced at 14/1 to right the wrongs of last season and claim the World Championship title in 2026.

• Alpine - Pierre Gasly & Franco Colapinto

• Aston Martin - Fernando Alonso & Lance Stroll

• Audi - Nico Hulkenberg & Gabriel Bortoleto

• Cadillac - Sergio Perez & Valtteri Bottas

• Ferrari - Charles Leclerc & Lewis Hamilton

• Haas - Esteban Ocon & Oliver Bearman

• McLaren - Lando Norris & Oscar Piastri

• Mercedes - George Russell & Kimi Antonelli

• Racing Bulls - Liam Lawson & Arvid Lindblad

• Red Bull - Max Verstappen & Isack Hadjar

• Williams - Carlos Sainz & Alex Albon

Rounding off our 2026 F1 season preview, we're sticking our neck out and making a couple of predictions ahead of the opening race - starting with the potential success of the British contingent.

George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, and Ollie Bearman are the men representing Great Britain on the circuit this year, and with three of them priced inside the top-seven favourites, expectations are high for the Brits - and we're going along with that. Our first F1 prediction is that three of the top four positions in the 2026 Drivers' Championship will be occupied by the British drivers, with enjoyable campaigns for McLaren, Mercedes, and Ferrari.

The current World Championship favourite, the reigning F1 champion, and the man with a record seven world titles are all English, and all come into the new season with a point to prove, so will be desperate to make their mark. The extended 22-man grid makes it even tougher for the drivers, but with so much experience - and lightning fast cars - we're tipping the Brits to set the standard.

Our second prediction is slightly less positive, but we're predicting a big name to finish bottom of the 2026 Drivers' Standings, with one of Cadillac's drivers holding up the rest of the pack.

Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are both acclaimed, experienced Grand Prix winners with a new team to represent - but that could ultimately be their downfall, with Cadillac having to cope with the new era of Formula One against a frighteningly fast field. By all accounts, Cadillac are under no illusions that this could be an incredibly tough season, but recruiting Perez and Bottas is a real sign of intent that they don't plan on just making up the numbers.

Regardless, we think the task ahead of Cadillac could be too much - even for drivers of such quality - so we're anticipating one of their big-name drivers to finish the season in 22nd position.

View the latest Formula One odds.

All odds and markets correct as of date of publication.